


These Sleepless Nights of Despair

by Sethyria



Category: Dishonored (Video Game)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-04-07
Updated: 2016-08-09
Packaged: 2017-12-07 19:38:39
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 19
Words: 33,724
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/752274
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sethyria/pseuds/Sethyria
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Amber Attano is framed for her sister-in-law's murder. After escaping from prison, she is approached by the Outsider, who seems to like messing with her head, and given the abilities she needs to avenge Jessamine's death.  (Pretty much the low chaos story with Amber, my little mute OC, as the main character.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Framed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My first fan fic. I wanted basically the same story, but I liked the idea of Corvo's character being a girl instead of a man. Of course that changed quite a number of parts of the rest of the story. I figured if I liked it, someone else may enjoy the idea as well. So, here it goes...

“Amber! You’re back!” A child’s voice rang to greet my ears. My niece ran up to me and hugged tight to my abdomen. “I missed you! Please don’t go away again for that long. I hate being around that nasty old Spymaster. I like that he stays away when you’re around.”

I smiled down at little Emily and kissed her forehead. Then I pulled her arms to make her face away from me, and she understood, skipping across the bridge. I looked up to my left, pushing my fluffy-curly pink hair out of the way, to see the gazebo next to the cliff outside of Dunwall tower. The Empress stood looking over her city. I smiled, and for a moment, I saw my brother ruling again. Then the Spymaster entered my vision and my smile faded. Those days were over. My brother is dead. His wife now holds the throne. And although they may care for the city the same, Jessamine’s focus was more on the city than her daughter. In all honesty, I preferred my brother’s time. My brother knew the people he put in charge to help him rule. Jessamine didn’t really care who people were when she chose who to help her rule, she only looked that the ability to do “okay” work. The disgusting Spymaster, Hiram Burrows was proof of that. He was semi-capable, but the only person that trusted him even slightly was the empress.

“Ah, welcome back Royal Protector." I was snapped out of my daydream by the religious leader’s voice. I nodded a greeting to him. He smiled at me and pulled his chin upwards, posing. I studied a painting being done of him. 

“Stop moving Campbell. And you, Amber.” I looked up at the Royal Physician and artist, Sokolov, at the sound of my name. “Welcome back. “ He hesitated. “From wherever you’ve been.”

“They sent her all around the isles to beg for aid.” Campbell said, disobeying Sokolov’s order of stillness. 

“A waste of time. My elixir will banish the plague from this city. Now keep still a moment, High Overseer Campbell.” 

Emily backed out of the conversation and skipped towards some stairs. I smiled to the men again as I turned to follow Emily. I climbed the stairs after her and saw Captain Curnow first. I had gotten to know the man well on the voyage around the isles. He was honorable. I shook his hand and walked toward the tall white pavilion. When I was close enough to hear the conversation my sister-in-law was having with the Spymaster, I stopped.

“They’re sick people, not criminals!” Jessamine’s voice was high in disbelief. 

“We’ve gone beyond that question, your Majesty. They’re-” His voice was nasally. He had obviously never cared for the poor. In fact, I recalled that he often called them "unnecessary."

“They’re my citizens!” The Empress cut in. Her voice was high still, and there was an oh so sharp stab of annoyance. “And we’ll save them from the plague if we can. All of them.”

“Very well.”

“We will not speak of this again.”

“Mother, Amber’s back.” Emily was obviously excited. We would be able to play hide and seek all she wanted now that I had returned. I’m sure she missed playing her favorite game. 

“Thank you, Emily.” Emily’s mother turned to face the Spymaster once again. “Leave us.”

I saw him bow rather low. “As you wish, your Majesty.” Then he turned on his heels and walked past me, stopping to give a greeting through gritted teeth. “Amber, two days early. Full of surprises, as usual.” Then he was walking on past me. I thought nothing of his bad attitude and continued on to greet my Empress. 

“What news have you brought me?” She asked, shoulder’s square. I handed her a letter I had received from a leader of another isle. She read it, her hand lowering all the time, as if the letter were some great weight she could no longer hold. She turned and looked over Wrenhaven River. “I had hoped that one of the other isles had dealt with this before. Knew of some kind of cure. This news is very bad. We’re at the breaking point.” She let the letter fall to the ground. “Cowards! They’re going to blockade us. They’ll wait to see if the plague turns the city into a graveyard.”

“Are you okay, mother?” Emily’s voice was soft. “You seem sad.”

“I’ll be okay, Emily. Wait. Where are the guards?! Who sent them away?!” The Empress’s voice was panicked as she looked around. 

“Look, what are they doing on the roof?” Emily recoiled into her mother’s arms. Both of them backed into a corner of the gazebo. 

I quickly thought through my history in fighting and anything that could be useful. I knew how to protect my Empress. 

Until of one of them appeared out of thin air in front of me. I stumbled backwards. The man had just been thirty feet away on the rooftop. I regained my balance, swinging my sword upward at the intruder. His mask was nearly cut off with my swing, and I saw blood fly. But the he disappeared. Just like he had never been there. I tried to think of where I had seen that mask before. It was a whaler’s mask! The men that wore these were assassins now. The only used the whaler masks to hide their faces. My thoughts were cut short as my right arm was also cut at the same moment. A large gash was now bleeding on my arm. To my right, another man had appeared from nowhere. I raised my gun to shoot, then felt I pierce in my left arm. He had shot a bolt from a crossbow through my pistol arm. I retaliated with a solid kick in his chest, followed by a swift upwards swing of my sword. He fell backwards as more blood flew, but darkness surrounded him and he vanished. 

“Look out!” I turned towards the people I was protecting. Emily was pointing towards the ground right outside of the pavilion. Another man had appeared. I had no hesitation and no distraction now as I fired my gun at him. He landed on his back and was gone in an instant. I looked around, expecting more. There was nothing. No blood anywhere. No bodies.

We had just been attacked and no evidence of it existed. What had really just happened?

A tight squeeze from Emily wouldn’t let me think anymore. She was crying into my side. I was about to hold her when I was pushed hard against one of the columns holding up the roof of the gazebo. Tried to move, but only my head would obey. I saw that I was being held up by nothing but a light green wave emitting from another man in a whaler mask. More men appeared, one very distinct, as he was not wearing a mask. A scar decorated his face across one eyebrow and his nose. Emily tried to run to help me, but was pushed down. My sister-in-law was pushed backwards and I could do nothing but watch in horror as the man with the scar ran a blade through her stomach. 

“Mommy!” I believe I heard Emily’s cry as she ran again, this time to get help. She got no more than four steps away before a large masked man picked her up roughly and the vanished with her. The man that “holding” me let me go as he too vanished. My head hit the ground hard. My vision blurred, but I looked up in time to see the man with the scar look down at me, the. Slowly turn, hesitate, and vanish as he walked away.

I struggled to push myself up. What was going on? Who were they? How did they appear and disappear so suddenly? No more than ten minutes had passed since I had arrived and already horrible things had occured. Everything that just happened... What had just happened? Jessamine! Once my arms began obeying my commands again, I rushed to Jessamine’s side. I pulled her to me, letting her sit up some. 

“It’s all… coming apart… Find… Find Emily. Protect her… You’ll know what to do. Right? ... Please…” Her eyes closed and I suddenly realized that now the city was left without a ruler. I heard footsteps and set the dead woman down gently. Then I stood, looking in shock, in understanding, at whose blood was on my hands. Two guards, Campbell, and Burrows ran into the shaded area. One guard held a knife to my face, while another knelt to check the empress’s pulse. When he found none, he gasped in disbelief.

“Ward us all!” Campbell held his hands over his mouth as he spoke. “Look at what she’s done.”

“Yes!” Hiram chirped in, overly loud and annunciated. “ _She’s_ killed the Empress.” He appeared to be looking around. “What have you done with Lady Emily, traitor?”

“Her own bodyguard,” Campbell said, rather emotionless, “Ironic.”

“I’ll see you beheaded for this! Take her away.” 

The guard swung the hilt of his sword down on my head. Had I not been in shock, I might have reacted. I tried to yell out, but as it had been all my life, no words came. I suddenly realized I was being framed for the murder of the most important person in Dunwall, my sister-in-law, the Empress. I fell as the world got darker. 

Before I had completely lost consciousness, I swear I saw the Spymaster smiling.


	2. Tortured

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As the name suggests, this is a torture scene. It's not bad though. Getting burned with a poker.

My mind was screaming. So many thoughts wanted to escape. I have never felt that being mute hindered me or my abilities in any way. But when I found myself locked in a chair, with fools talking in my face about a murder I didn’t commit, not able to state my innocence, I felt that I was at a disadvantage. “My crimes” were heinous enough that I was put in Coldridge Prison. Six long months I’ve sat in this disgusting place. I was surrounded by real criminals, surrounded by dangerous and aggressive people, that I knew would kill me without hesitation if I did so much as look at them wrong. I was scared. I wanted to cry. But I had to stay strong. I could not let them see any weakness.

My strong composition faltered as the first hot poker was laid across my legs. My face twisted in pain with my mouth hanging open in a silent scream. The only other mute person I knew, the Torturer, pulled back as he saw my face.

“This is your final chance, Amber. Sign the confession,” the High Overseer said in a flat voice, “and let me give you the rites to put your spirit at ease.” He nodded at the Torturer and I prepared myself. This time the pain began in my left cheek. With my wrists firmly held to the chair, all I could do was clutched the ends of the arms of the chair in an attempt not to let tears fall. My wrists were bloody from being stuck in the interrogation chair. My ankles were much worse. I felt the pain lessen and opened my eyes. Everything was red and black. I tried to blink away the pain, and some of my sight returned.

“That’s enough for now.” I instantly recognized the voice of Hiram Burrows, or the Lord Regent as he was now referred to as. “Get out. Let’s give the girl some time to think.”

 _Girl,_ I thought. _Were this_ girl _not cuffed to a damn chair, she’d slice your throat with a hot poker._

As the door behind me shut with the Torturer’s exit, the Regent began laughing. “Amber, the Empress is dead.” I squeezed the arms of the chair tight. “Her daughter Emily is hidden away.” Tighter. “And no one,” Tighter, “will ever,” Tighter, “know the truth.” A sharp _twang_ echoed around the room as a small piece of the metal chair broke off in my hand, causing blood to flow from my newly cut fingers.

They both laughed at me. I tilted my head down. Bloody, matted hair covered my face. It was nearly impossible to tell the natural, yet unusual, color anymore. I heard two footsteps, then my head was pushed hard against the chair head. “Yes.” Campbell’s breath blew against my face. “Unlucky you. Tomorrow you’ll be executed, but it’s for a good cause.”

 _The only thing good about you will be your death._ My ever quiet insults went unnoticed by the High Overseer.

“This city needs strong leadership now. Someone to guide the weak, and that’s where we come in.”

My head was released and it fell. I didn’t care about any of this. I just wanted to either be dead, or watch them die. They sentenced me to this hell, and my time here had made me murderous.

A strong grip on my chin forced me to look at the nasally voiced ex-Spymaster. “There was nothing personal in this, even though you did almost sink our plans. But it turned out well. You were in the wrong place at exactly the right time, and someone has to take the fall.” I bared my teeth and spat blood at him. He backed up in disgust and stood tall. “Goodbye, Amber.”

_No…_

“Guards!”

_No…_

“Take her back to her cell!”

 _No! This is_ not _goodbye. This is_ not _the end. This is just the beginning._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this one is rather short. So I guess I'm changing it up a bit more than I originally intended. I just feel the need to make Burrows and Campbell seem a little mad.  
> So how's it so far?


	3. Assisted

“Amber, you should eat up.” A new voice in the prison woke me from my restless slumber. It was deep and smooth; one I would never trust. “This meal comes from a friend.” And there was my proof. Friends. I had no friends anymore. No believed that I didn’t kill the Empress. My side of the story had gotten me into a lot of trouble over the past six months. Many, many people tried to hurt me because they believed I was the murderer, and some even tried to kill me. Luckily, the guards remembered that, although I was in a prison consisting of mostly males, I was indeed a female. They protected me from getting killed, but they wouldn’t stop people from hurting me rather seriously. The most common punishment for my silent protest was trying to cut off my limbs. Scars now decorated all of my body. 

I shivered as I remembered all the pain I’d experienced recently. I heard footsteps outside my cell and turned my head to look at the man that was walking away.

A guard uniform. 

Standing, I began walking away from my stone bed to the steel bars that enclosed one side of my prison cell. Bread was left on the tray that the man had dropped. I sat on the brick ground and picked up the bread, taking small bites, hoping it would last. As I took my first bite, something winked at me from the tray. A key? A note accompanied it and I read it as I gnawed on my stale bread. 

**Amber,**  
**Who we are is irrelevant right now. Just know that we have faith in you.**  
**Here is the key to your cell. Once you’re out, head for the prison Interrogation Room. Take the explosive there and plant it on the outer door. When the bomb goes off, run. Make for the river and lose yourself in the sewers. You’ll find some useful gear stashed there.**  
**One of the guards will leave a weapon just outside your cell.**  
**And good luck. We need you alive and well for what’s to come.**  
**A friend.**

_Nice._

I heard voices of guards so I stayed as quiet as possible. The small key was light and felt so fragile, but this was the answer to my calls for freedom, which it proved when my cell lock clicked open. I walked forward and found a sword on a table across the room, along with a few coins that I pocketed in my pants. 

“What’s with all the…” I ducked down at the sound of a voice. Listening, I crawled toward the sound. Two voices. As far as I heard, they came from another room attached to this one by open windows and a door. I peaked my head up to the window to see them. There were three men. One of the stood only five feet from me, while the other two stood almost twenty feet away talking to each other. I instantly saw my chance. I crept toward the door and took two steps out. Then I grabbed the closest guard at his throat with my arms and pulled towards me. I was only a girl, so choking him to sleep would take a moment or two.

Then he went heavy. I picked up his unconscious body and backed up in to the last room I was in. Neither of the guards had even noticed that their friend was gone. I heard a snicker behind me so I dropped the man out of sight and turned. 

Another man sat in a cell. When he saw me looking at him, he stood and walked to the cell bars. I would guess he was from a gang by the look of him. “Good, you’re out. Now crack some heads. Oh, and tell Slackjaw I’m in here.”

I turned away, feeling a scar on my upper right arm. He was one of the men that tried to cut my arm completely off two months ago. He could rot.

I knelt down and headed towards the door again. I tilted me head around so that I could barely see around the corner. One guard stood with his back to me, standing where the other man stood minutes ago. The other man was facing the hall where everyone was standing. Then he turned. I took the opportunity. I jumped out to take the other man down. As soon as his weight increased, I pulled him back and left him with the other sleeping man. 

“Huh?” 

_Damn. I was too noisy._

I sat just beside the door and stayed quiet for what felt like forever. “Must have been rats or something.” I returned to the door a third time. He was still turned away. I quietly but quickly rushed towards him…

When he turned around, I pressed myself into a hollow part of the wall. I tilted my head again to see him. He walked less than a foot in front of me. Lucky for me, and somewhat for him, he faced the opposite direction. My dirty skin and dirty hair blended into the brick wall behind me, so I was hidden rather easily. 

_Last one._

I threw my arms around his neck and clung to myself. His breath caught, then before it stopped completely, I let him fall.

“Hey! You there! Stop!”

_What? Not the last one?_

I went ahead and stood up. The (hopefully) last guard crashed down the stairs. He kicked down the door and stood before me with a pistol and sword drawn. He aimed and I rolled forward, barely missing the shot.

_That’ll alert other guards. This isn’t good!_

I ducked between his legs, ending up behind him. Then, like the other three guards, I choked him. He was stronger than the rest, probably because he was aware of me, but he still went down after a minute of struggling. As he fell, his sword caught my lower right leg. I looked down, seeing the blood. Hopefully that would dry.

Just like in my cell, something below me winked at me. The man was carrying a key on him. I snatched it up. His belt would also be useful. Stripping him of his clothes would do nothing for me because the dark navy blue uniform would only make me stand out even more. I just stole the belt and all the pouches attached to it, transferring the coins from my pocket to one of the empty sacs. I looked around for an exit, then, and spotted the one the last guard had kicked down. My only way out. As long as I get to the interrogation room again…

I ran through the doorway, up some crumbling stairs and suddenly I was on the walkway above the hall. To my left was a door. I twisted the handle and it opened on the first try. I walked through with my sword in front of me. No one. To my left now were some pistols. I took one of them off the wall, putting it in the empty holster that was also part of the belt. Then I emptied the rest of the pistols of their bullets, shoving each piece of ammo into an empty pouch. After, I neatly placed the guns back on the wall where they’d been sitting.  
Hopefully, of any guards come to get them, they’ll not check for ammo, and end up shooting nothing. 

I walked calmly back out of the room. A gated door stood that I had not noticed before. The lock was obviously in place so there was no sense in just pulling on it. The key came to mind. I pulled out the key ring but two identical keys hung from the ring. 

_Really?!_

They were both just old rusty keys. I tried the one to the right and with luck, it was the correct guess. I passed on into my next step on escape.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have absolutely no clue how to format like this. Sorry if the note blends into the rest of the text this time!


	4. Freed

He stood about ten feet in front of me, facing my left. How he hadn’t seen me by now or how he hadn’t heard me pushing that heavy gate open was beyond me. But I sat still, crouching in the shadow. As soon as he began walking, I crawled after him. I almost tripped over myself, oddly enough, when a wave of dizziness hit me. But I recovered.

Same as before, this guard fell below me. He let out a small huff as he fell. I didn’t want to kill any of these guards. I didn’t know them. They haven’t caused me any pain that I know of. They are all just following orders. Even if that meant leaving me to handle myself in a prison. Without cause, revenge is nothing. With serious cause, revenge solves everything. Yes, I wouldn’t mind if the whole city burned at this moment, but I wouldn’t be the one to cause it. I didn't feel this way for the citizens. No, not for these people.

_For Emily._

I took coins and froze. As far as I could hear, there were no other people in this hallway. I continued down this one until it split into another one. Going left had helped me so far in my escape so I continued the pattern. And it worked. I came to over look the entrance to the interrogation room. I slipped quietly down some stairs. But then I heard grunt. I looked quickly back up the stairs behind me. No followers, but what I did see was much worse. So bad it could have completely ruined my chance for escape from this hell hole. 

A trail of blood came had been laid out. All of it coming from that one cut on my leg. I had thought it would have dried up by now. But no. It was bleeding much more than I could have expected it to. That would explain the slight dizziness I’d been feeling. I pushed on though. Surely there was still a chance for me. I ran across the room to what had been my torture chamber. As soon as I entered the room, I fell. Memories flooded me. All the blood, all the rage, all the pain. I looked up, trying to balance myself. _His_ face greeted me. Hanging on the far wall of the room was a picture of a man walking down a flight of stairs, looking as smug as he could be. 

_The Regent._

He would die by my hand. I would make sure of it. I shook my head. Then stood up. I did not bow below a beast like that. 

_Continue._

I walked past the chair I had been chained down to, past the small gate that separated the interrogator from the accused. And that’s when my mind decided that a random sonograph wanted to be played. I pushed the button that I found on the side of it. I just wanted the noise. I didn’t even care what was playing. All I knew was that the Regent’s voice filled the room. 

I looked around as it played. A note telling the guards not to let the interrogator kill me was laying on the table. I took it. 

_That’s enough._

I slowly walked into the next room. Now where was that safe? 

_Why directly in front of me, of course._

No combination needed. The contraption opened with a single touch. 

_Nice bomb._ I thought. _And how convenient. A belt strap. These people thought of everything._

I turned around and a guard stood facing away from me. My heart stopped in my chest. These people were getting sneaky. But he just unlocked the door and walked through. Before I had made it to the door after him, I saw a tall glass bottle and picked it up, having a plan in my head. I peaked around one side of the door frame. Two men were talking to each other. That’s all I could see. They were talking about whose job it was to check what around the prison. I decided it was better to move quickly than to wait for them to start paying attention. 

I crept down the stairs, then glanced to me left. No way to get around them there. So I looked to my right, quickly taking advantage of the hiding spot a large dumpster provided. I stopped momentarily. I knew I was close. No one could catch me now. Not now that I had come so far. I saw one guard walking away from me while the other was walking up the stairs I had just come down. Making sure to stay as far in the shadows as possible, I walked further away from the door I came in. As far as I could see, only one other door allowed me an exit. And of course it would be all the way on the far end of the room and up some more stairs. I was almost there, though. 

The guard stopped. So did I. Then I evaluated the situation. He was not about ten feet from the stairs, facing away from them. I stayed against the far right wall, slowly sneaking forward. When I was at my last piece of cover, another dumpster, I tilted my head out to see if the guard was still there. 

_Is that sick bastard peeing?!_

_Disgusting._ I ignored him. Instead I threw the bottle as far away from the stairs as possible. 

Crash! “Huh?”

The guards, all of them, looked at where the bottle had fallen and studied the immediate area. I took this chance to run up the stairs and out of sight of any of them. I slid through the doorless walkway and froze, my entire body tensing up. Two more guards stood ahead of me. I was still in the shadows, but were they paying the slightest bit of attention to their surroundings, I’d be easily spotted. One man was kneeling over the lower portion of a closed off area of the room. It was open by doors and windows with no glass. Down a long thing hallway, only one guard stood watch. And as soon as he began walking away, I tried to hide behind the counter, tilting my head out only enough so that I could see the guard. While he was still facing away, I jumped in the enclosed area, and took down this guard like every other today. Rather than letting him just fall, I held his weight and gently set him down out of sight. Then I crouched low. Two doors were before me now. One led out into the hall, while the other was a mystery. I crept forward, putting my eye to the key hole of the door. I could see another room identical to this one. A guard stood facing away.

_No point in wasting time._

I cracked the door slightly. Another guard went down. I dragged him quietly to join the other unconscious man. Hair stood on the back of my neck. I turned around and realized I had been facing away from the door to the hall. I looked through the key hole like I had for the other door. I was greeted by blackness. Then the door creaked. I gasped silently. The other guard was leaning on the door! If he had opened or even just seen me, I’d be dead. I waited for the guard to move. I had no advantage here if his back was against my exit. So I sat. He stood whistling forever. 

Why was he standing still for so long? Then the door creaked again. I pushed myself up and jumped at the opportunity. He fell to the ground, then was put with the others. I stopped and listened. Nothing. I stood and walked normally. Getting through that a large metal door at the end of the hall was now my main objective. It was an emergency door that was meant to keep prisoners inside in this exact situation. I remembered seeing the man pull a switch to open and close it. I walked through to the other room. 

_There we go._

A large pull switch was attached to the counter. How had I not seen it before? I casually strode over and pulled. A loud thud sounded with the door opening. I looked through the window in front of me. I saw the gate lifting. Then I knelt down, opened the door leading into the hall, and ran to hide behind the oversized doorframe, figuring there would be guards in the exit room. I peaked my head around the corner.

_Two._

Only two people stood between me and freedom now. One guard stood facing away from the door while another was walking up some stairs. While both of them were facing away from me, I took out the first guard, dragging him behind the doorframe I had just been hiding behind. 

“Huh?”

_Damn it all, I can’t possibly be that loud._

I peaked my head around, half expecting him to be looking right at me. Instead he was facing my right and looking down. Then he stomped his foot down, and I heard a loud _squish._

“Damn rats.”

He turned to his side which happened to be facing away from me. I bolted out from my hiding spot and ran towards him, hardly caring about how loud I was. I was too close to care. The guard turned towards me just as I had come close enough to take him down. So I slid under his legs, then quickly turned. Just as with the guard that had spotted me in the first hallway of my escape, this man took longer to knock out. He soon joined his friends behind the door. Then I walked back up the stairs. There was no one left. There had to be a switch to close the door behind me. I looked around.

_Food!_

There were some tins of whale meat on one of the low counter tops. Next to it was the switch to the door, identical to the last. I pulled it down and watched the door close, munching on the food in the tins. Then I walked over to the last door. The bomb fit perfectly on the reinforced metal lock. I set the charger for ten seconds and then bolted down the stairs. I slid into a gap in the wall just as the explosion happened. 

Air rushed past me. Dirt and rats were blown against the closed door next to me. All I could hear for a moment was loud ringing. The heat was intense, but bearable. I realized I was on the ground and I tried to stand. My legs were getting weak. I ran up the stairs. The bomb had certainly done its job. A tallboy could easily fit through the hole. I ran towards the blinding light of the outside. 

And wind hit my face. 

_I’m out. I’m free._

I heard things I had not heard in months. The rushing of water. The chirp of a bird. 

Then I heard yelling, screaming, and the _clink_ of swords behind me. I had to go. Now. The draw bridge in front of me had been raised. I walked to the edge of the brick ground. The river was so far down. There was a good possibility of death. Was it worth it?

“There she is!” I turned my face to the voices. I felt my hair flap against my back, almost like a push to jump. Why was I here? “Get her!”

I turned back forward again, tightening my muscles. Then I put one foot out and stepped. My hair flew up around me. I took a deep breath. Then I crashed into the river.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow I sort of forgot about this. I've started working on it again, so expect an update in about I week. (around 2/19/14)


	5. Chased

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yeah. It's been a while. Sorry!
> 
> I know this is short, but there's more. I might get another chapter up tonight. No promises though.

The force was terrible. Even with my toes pointed my body hit the water hard. I knew I had to act quickly though. I opened my eyes in the dirty water, wincing when the filth seared my eyes. But I saw my exit. The light above me let me see a small hole in the rocks in front of me. I pushed myself upwards in the water. I tasted blood in my mouth along with, unfortunately, other things I dare not say. My cheek burned from where I apparently bit it. My body said this is even more torture for letting them get to Jessamine. 

_No._

I couldn’t think like that. It was on them, not me. 

When I reached the hole, I saw that it was not a hole at all, but rather a small dip in the rocks. My air was running out, so I rose to the surface. It took little time for the bullets to begin flying in my direction. I hurriedly crawled out on top of the rocks, almost slipping a few times. My clothes were almost too heavy to run. The bullets quickly changed my mind. I ducked, but snuck a look over my shoulder. They were coming. 

I needed to find the sewer entrance. I turned back, running forward towards the cliff with the drawbridge on it. _Come on. They said there were sewers here. Where's the damn entrance?!_ I heard more bullets fly off rocks behind me. The edge of the cliff hid me from view of them, but only barely. Less than a foot behind me a rock shattered as it was struck with a projectile. _Damnit._

Then I was saved. A large metal structure outlined an opening in the rock face. I ducked though.

“If she gets to the sewers, we lose her!”

 _Good_.

They were frantically yelling at each other to catch me. But I was already gone. My feet pounded against the ground and water splashed around me, but I made it to the door. It looked like a simple house door, but it was the next leg of my journey. 

Beside me to my left a sign read “No Trespassing.” I laughed to myself. Trespassing was going to be the least of my crimes. The door beckoned me. I surely didn’t put up a fight, and greeted the sewers as my saving grace.


	6. Hunted

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I'm on a ton of pain pills and can't see straight like at all. If you see anything wrong just let me know and I'll try to fix it quickly. Also I like feedback. Only takes a sec and I'd love to know if I'm doing well at all.  
> Sorry about my crappy formatting, too. I'm still learning.

Water poured from pipes overhead onto the mix of cement and dirt patches that was the ground. It smelled worse than I could try to describe. There were rats burring into trash pits, but they mainly ignored me. Not a large enough group to try and devour me. In front of me was a gated entrance to the sewers. As I made my way to and through the door, I was almost drowned in the repulsing flow of liquid from above me.

A light lit my front. This was a small room, with another barred door in the far corner. There were metal wheels and gears scattered everywhere. This looked like a miniature junkyard. Next to the far door was a stack of wooden crates large and long enough to be coffins. A note was tacked to one. I walked to the crates, and then jumped back and let out a silent scream when I heard squeaks and metal hit metal. I looked around for the rats before I realised they were coming from the other side of the door beside me. They didn’t make it through, but they were sure trying to. Vicious things. I let myself calm down for a moment, reaching out for the note. Then I heard voices.

_Guards._

It was muffled at first. I couldn’t make out much. There must have been a solid door between us.

“You think she had help?”

They were on to me. They continued talking as I hid behind the wall beside the door.

“You're scared of her? She’s Serkonan. It’s all merchants and whores down there. I mean she’s a woman, too! She was probably one of those whores”

_Bastard._

“By the Outsider, I wish I could afford a shot at her.”

 _Rot in the Void!_ I pushed my arm across the open air in front of the door and snatched the note, and just a quickly pulled my arm back to my body. Ignoring the guards, I quickly read what my assistors were telling me.

 **Amber, if you’re reading this it means our plan worked and you’ve broken free from Coldridge. One of our contacts has hidden weapons for you somewhere deeper in the sewers. Grab the gear and find Samuel where these tunnels dump out in to the river. He will bring you to us.**  
**A friend who will meet you soon**

 _Well they follow up at least._ I let my head fall back to the wall behind me and closed my eyes. This was a second chance for me, if I could find a way out of this damn rood. I opened my eyes and tilted my head in curiosity. A light was reflected on to higher up on the wall opposite me. I pushed myself away from the wall I had been leaning on, still keeping hidden, and looked up it. There was a space above the gated door, and from the looks of it, the room was a cage with metal bars on top that I might just be able to climb on. I peeked around the corner. No one was coming still, and the guards had either moved too far for me to hear them or stopped talking completely. I decided now was as good a time as ever. I heaved my weight forward towards the wooden crates. I then used my momentum to lift myself to the top of them. Then I continued my movements to the top of a vertical crate, then on to the top of the cage. From where I was, it could see it extended all the way through. I slowly crept forward, keeping my ear up for the men I heard earlier.

A pipe to my left hissed and steam scorched my arm, ripping away at a few layers of skin. My leg fell through the opening between two of the bars when I jumped. I needed to be careful. The rats below me squeaked in anticipation, waiting for the food that was my flesh to get into reach. I swung my leg back up and continued forward, staying as far away from the pipes as I could manage. Just in front of me the ceiling lowered until the height of my passage was only about three feet. I holstered my weapons and secured them. Then I continued. Less than five seconds of low crawling and I heard a click below me. A solid metal door swung open. I realized suddenly what that meant for them.

“Oh no!”

I reached out my arm in silence. The rats took their chance and surrounded the two men. They fought for their lives, swinging swords crazily. You could almost see the moment they gave up and just let the rats eat them alive.

_Poor bastards._

If I had been able to speak, maybe I could have yelled some sort of warning.

Then my anger came to me. This is Burrows’ fault. If I hadn’t been framed, these men wouldn’t have had to search the sewers at all. I wasn’t responsible. Plus, the way they were talking… It seemed as though at least the one man disserved his death.

Regardless, no one could help them now, so there was no point in stopping. I avoided more steaming pipes to both my left and right as I made my way through. Around a bend to the right, the end of the large cage-like structure came into sight. I dangled my legs over the edge of the drop and lined myself up carefully so as not to land badly on the stairs below. I’ve been warned about the stairs.

I dropped. I felt my stomach tighten as I thought about jumping into the river. My feet caught the stairs as I landed safely. Behind me the rats begged for more food. I walked on.

There was an opening in front of me labelled “Main Drain.” At least I knew there wouldn’t be a wrong path down here. So far it’s been very one way. More water dripped onto my hair. I jumped down more stairs and studied the flow of dirty, used water in front of me.

To my right, I heard ripping noises. My sword was drawn before I knew it.

I threw up a bit in my mouth. A young man was dead. And the ripping was his flesh. Rats covered all but his face as they ate, and even that didn’t last long.

Then they spotted me.

My only way away from the rats at this point was the water. My mind told me not to as I jumped in. Bits of waste floated around me as I held my head above the surface. I swam away from the edges and towards the middle of the drainage, and I looked for the next place I needed to go. There was a small arch above the water a little ways on. Maybe I could get out there. I kept my head above the water, scared to put my mouth in that. Under the arch, it was almost pitch black, a sharp and painful contrast to the white of artificial light on the other side. I didn’t hear or see and rats or guards, so I waded to the edge and pulled myself up the small wall to dry land.

When I realized I didn’t smell anything, I decided it was because I unconsciously shut off my sense of smell due to how disgusting everything was down here. However, I still took a moment to breathe and calm down. I turned and say two corpses clinging to each other. Lovers. The sight broke my heart. Probably come here to die together. I’d never felt that close to anyone, but I can only imagine what it must be like to decide to be ended together.

I needed to ignore that. My focus needed to be on getting out of here. I turned away and walked forward again. Up more stairs, I saw another corpse mangled into a wheel. Judging by the large door and several signs, the wheel opened the door. I pulled the dead body from the wheel and dragged him away to the left. Then I drew my gun, ready for anything. I turned the wheel and flinched at the loud screeching the door made. But there were no other noises. No guards. No rats. I continued and put away my gun. There were guards before, why not now?

In this next room, there was a raised walkway to the right, and a large open area below it. A wooden ramp led me up to the walkway. Directly in front of me, a gated door was wide open.

 _Why not?_ I continued forward through it, this time with the sword rather than the gun.

“Aren't we supposed to load the bodies into carts headed for the Flooded District?”

I jumped back and listen to where the voices were coming from. From above, a body fell to the ground.

“Yeah, but screw that. That’s too far.” Another body. They were lazy enough to dump plagued bodies into the sewers. The area they let them fall into was a large drainage area, built to catch water in case of floods . It was almost completely open in the sky, minus the large metal bars cutting me off from simply climbing up. When they voices disappeared, I walked into the light. In the middle of the large room was a metal structure that stood above the rest of the muddy ground. Two bodies lay sprawled out on it. I let one foot down to the ground. Squeaks echoed around the room and I lifted my foot right back up. Rather that run, I hopped from one rock to another until I was in reach of the metal platform. From there I studied the room further. A well-populated group of rats guarded the flood door I needed to get to to leave this room and progress further.

_Can’t help the dead._

I calculated a way to use the two bodies on the platform to draw the hungry rats from the door. Throwing one a little away from the door should get their attention enough to make them see the second one I throw. I kneeled down and pulled one man over my shoulder. Running towards one side of the platform, I stopped my body and pushed the man’s corpse away, vaulting it towards the door. It didn’t take the rats long to devour it completely. I had barely gotten the other dead man off the bars and dropped his body before they swarmed it too. I jumped over them and sprinted to a wheel that I guessed would open this door similar to the way that last one did. I lifted it all the way and it locked into place. Then I dashed past the doorway and over wooden logs that would prevent the rats from following me.

Greenery hung low from the ceiling. Another river was in my path, and the walkway continued to the right.

A loud pop and sizzle came from all around me. “Attention, Dunwall citizens. The assassin Amber, responsible for the death of our Fair Empress and the disappearance of Lady Emily, heir to the throne, has temporarily escaped state custody. Any evidence as to her whereabouts must be delivered to the City Watch at once.”

_Well the news is out._

More stairs. These were metal, unlike any others before. A large water fall stood above me and it looked like it was possible to follow a chain up to the top of it. Before I moved or climbed, I walked to a fire I almost hadn’t even noticed. A rat was on a grate above the fire and had been cooking for some time. I figured if I didn’t have the plague already, surely the odds of this being a plague rat were in my favour. I lifted the skewered rat to my mouth and enjoyed more food. I hadn’t been fed much in prison, and I was malnourished. This, along with what I ate just before I left Coldridge, was a feast. I spotted a leather bag sitting on a metal support and checked inside as I finished my meal. I put the contents into my coin purse. Would I need another bag? I strapped it to my belt in case. Girls can’t have too many bags.

I stood up tall I prepared myself to climb. Once I began I realised how long I had been locked up. I was out of practice, but I managed. When I reached the top of the waterfall, a walkway covered the water. I swung the chain and jumped to the ground, almost missing my footing and falling backwards. At the top there were two paths that led from where I stood on a small wooden bridge over the water. To the right, a hall separated from that path and was illuminated by some kind of light. Out of curiosity, I followed that way and found a trip wire. The hard way.

Fire erupted in my face and a loud explosion blocked the path for a moment. It was dark and dusty and I choked on the air for a few moments after. I looked forward. No people, but there was a bolt machine pointed at the wall just to my right. Checking for more wires, I made my way to the machine and emptied it. Two incendiary bolts were put into my newly acquired bag. There was a small wooden crate before the dead end of a wall, and I grabbed at the money left there. I also studied the elixir before deciding now was as good a time as any to drink it. The red colour told me it was one of Sokolov’s concoctions. If it was meant to prevent the plague, maybe it would help if I've already been infected from being down here. I remembered that Sokolov's mixtures also had a sort of healing property. It would dull pain and help heal any injuries. I turned back and followed the other path this time. Before I reached yet another set of stairs going up, I spotted the wire. It was about hip level and glimmered in the light. I ducked under and avoided it entirely. At the top of the stairs, I looked to the right and saw the machine it was connected to. It was probably set up by the same person, although it was obviously not the work of the Watch. I ignored it.

A small square of perfect white stood out from the dirtiness of the sewers. Another note was attached to a box that opened to the sides.

 **Greetings, Amber. Or should I say Royal Protector, as you were known before that title was wrongfully taken from you.**  
**We are servants of the Empire and of the true Empress, a group of loyalists who want very much to meet you. Take these weapons, crafted for you from the finest materials in the Isles, and meet with our man, Samuel, near where these tunnels spill into Wrenhaven River.**  
**All haste and luck. We share a common purpose.**

 _Now this is something I can work with._ I examined what I had been given: a new sword that was collapsible, a key to a door, a crossbow that was surprising light in weight, and a new set of clothes that were not bright, but were definitely better than the left over clothes I’d been given at the prison. This is what I needed from these people.


	7. Liberated

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again with the pain pills... Hope nothing is too messed up.

I discovered what the key was for before stood up from changing. A gated door, similar to all the others before it, stood in my path. I unlocked it and added the key to my growing collection. Before I left, I pocketed more coins I found on the ground. Then I left through the door. Another wire glimmered. It was just a bit lower than the last one, but not low enough to step over. Jumping would make far too much noise. Instead I backed up a step. Pushing my weight to get up to an appropriate speed, I ran and slid under the wire. When no explosions occurred, I figured I was okay to stand. I looked around to where the machine would have fired the bolt. Directly to my right I spotted it.  
I walked without looking exactly where I was going and stubbed my foot into what I found was a safe. I read a note that lay on top of a table beside it. 

**Jelly,**  
**In case you’re too daft to remember, look to your whiskey for the answer. Whiskey. Got it?**  
**If you want your share you’ll sort it out. If not, I’ll come back for it next month.**

_Whiskey..._ I looked up and around. On the opposite side of the safe of the table stood a bookshelf. Of course, on one of the shelves, a row of empty whiskey bottles were neatly lined up to cover something behind it. I walked around the safe and examined the hidden answer. There was nothing but the number 4-5-1. 

_A combination for the safe I guess._ I stepped back again and leaned down to the safe. I turned the numbers on the lock face until they were in the order I had seen. A loud click sounded and I pulled the door open. A stolen jewel box is what I picked up first, followed by another of Sokolov’s elixirs. I wondered how much of this was okay to drink. It was probably a better idea to save it for later. After opening the jewellery box and throwing out the contents, I decided it was time to go. Enough stalling. I turned my back on the safe and walked over two wooden planks that had been laid over the water. On the other side, I turned left and ducked before running into a wooden support. I didn’t walk through, but I reached around the beam and took the incendiary bolts from the shooting machine. Then I ducked my head back though and proceeded the other way. I pulled myself up a short wall and stepped out onto metal grated floor. 

“She won’t get past me, sir.” I froze. 

Another voice peeped out as I tried to find where they were coming from. “Do you know who we’re hunting here? Don’t try to take her on alone.” 

I lowered my eyes to look through the metal floor and saw two of the City Watch below me. “But what if no one from the squad is around?” 

I looked around for something to do while they talked. Another elixir sat on a table, while in an old street car sat some bullets and some herbs. I pocketed everything I could while still listening and remaining nearly silent. 

“Bastard.” I took that as a sign one guard had left the other. I turned completely around and walked forward to a large square in the ground that was missing flooring. There were a set of rocks protruding from the wall I could use to get to the lower level of the sewers without making too much noise. I jumped down, then down again. There was a bottle that I thought I could throw and distract the one remaining Watchman while jumped down to the ground. It crashed on the ground about twenty feet away next to a stream of water. 

“What?” The guard turned his back. My feel landed softly on the ground, and while the guard still had his back turned, I threw my arm around his next. “Hnph!” I covered his mouth with my other had and tightened my grip around his throat. After another moment he went down quietly. I pulled his body back and hid him behind a short metal wall. It looked almost like a longways riot shield. My body was low and I was focused. I crawled forward some and went up a small wooden ramp to the top of some rocks. From here, I could see three more guards while still staying hidden. I quickly rummaged through what was given to me when I received the crossbow from my saviours until I found what I was looking for among the items; I equipped the sleep darts. Then I raised my bow to aim. The first man went down silently. I reloaded fast, and took out the second closest man to me. He wasn’t so silent in his fall. 

The last guard noticed me immediately. “Assassin! Help!” He looked over at the sleeping bodies of his allies and probably assumed they were dead. “For the Watch!” He charged at me with his sword raised. I took no hesitation and shot him with my last sleeping dart. He fought it, and continued running at me. Then it hit him fast and he tripped over himself. 

_Annoying people… Why do we still rely on the watch?_

I jumped down from my hiding spot. There was a fire with a rat burning on the makeshift grill above it, but ignored it this time. I was still full from before. Instead I looked through the belongings of all the guards I had taken down. Several coins, but nothing useful to my journey was found. I walked forward again. This part of the room was small compared to the next part that was cut off by a brick wall. The next part was flooded, and when I got to it, I could see my exit. My body was tired. I knew I needed to find Samuel soon or I would have to stay here, and that was not an option I preferred to think about. I waded through hip deep water to a dirt shore on the opposite corner of the room. I felt disgusting. These clothes were just given to me and they were already covered in filth and several other unsanitary… things…

Light spilled out from the hole above me. Still not natural light, the light saddened me. I pulled myself to the top of the wooden platform and walked through the storm drain. A very bright, very white light shown directly in my face. I walked past it while wiping tears away from my eyes that appeared with the sudden change in lighting. Once past it, I turned to the left and found something unexpected. Not only did I see natural light, I heard a train cart above me somewhere. I half-jogged another ten feet and turned left again. 

_I’m outside._ I was out of the sewers. I walked on. The drain out had to be around here somewhere. 

A familiar loud pop and static sounded as I walked. “Attention, Dunwall citizens. The assassin Amber, responsible for…” I zoned it out. It was obviously the same message as before. Just to my right there was a large trash bin. I avoided it and moved around. I was a bit nervous about the train above my head, but it _zoomed_ pass without any problems. It was just so low to the ground. I turned to my right, and the day which I haven’t seen in so long greeted me. 

The day, and a man.

“Amber, over here!” His voice was rough and aged. “Quickly.” Was this Samuel? “I’m a friend.” I trusted the softness in his voice. I needed a way out, and he just might be it. My body eased into a standing position, and I lowered my crossbow from the aim I had it at his head. Then I walked towards him still suspicious. He smiled slightly, and nodded in what looked like approval. “I’m Samuel, and I work for some good people who want very much to meet you.” I look past him at the motorboat he had obviously come in. 

_Will these people get me what I want?_

I listened to him while looking past him still. He followed my gaze then turned back to be and shook his head. “They said you’d come out here, but I can still hardly believe it.” 

He studied me over. Then he smiled at me. I tried to smile back, but I was cold, scared, and still quite suspicious. “I’ll take you to meet them,” he shook his head at the boat, “just down the river from here.” 

I nodded and he started to get in his boat. I walked after him, holstering all my weapons, but keeping my sword to where I could draw it quickly if needed. Before I reached the edge of the shore, I was distracted by a large whaling ship that started to drift by the river in front of me. Usually I wouldn’t notice these, as they're common here. But this whale stood out. On its side were strange markings. Tribal looking, they were not something you'd see on a whale of everyday origin. My head spun slightly while I was looking at them. 

“Coming?” the old man called to me. I shook my head down, shaking the images of the whale away, and then I nodded at him and proceeded getting into his boat. This was it. I was out. I had escaped their hold.

_I’m coming for you Burrows._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well I had planned to put up the next chapter today (4/13/14) even with the Homestuck holiday, but my computer decided to delete everything I had written along with all the chapters I've already posted. I'm rewriting as fast as I can, I swear.


	8. Greeted

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I give up on fighting with my computer. I think chapters from now on will be short. I need new chapter title ideas...

There was only the slightest hum coming from the engine on the way back. Well, minus the slap of waves onto the side of the boat. I wanted to ask questions. Who was this man saving me from captivity? Where exactly were we going? But I doubt this man knew sign language. So I sat in silence. I looked around at the surroundings. The river was bigger than I remember. Wider I suppose. I nodded my head back and looked up at the sky. It was getting close to being in the evening and the sky was darkening. My head fell back down and I watched the man steering the boat. He seemed nice enough, but I knew nothing about him. I knew nothing that really made me want to trust him.

“Judging by the dark look in your eye, you don’t take kindly to strangers.” I glanced away at his words. He hadn’t even been looking at me. Still, he chuckled. “It’s alright. I understand. After all, the whole city betrayed you. Not sure how I’d do in that situation. But I know trusting someone, especially someone who just broke me out of prison, would be mighty hard.” He looked back at me and smiled softly. “So I guess I understand.”

I’m not sure what made my face heat up, but the old man struck a minor chord in my head. It was sad, but strong. I felt the slightest dissonance begin to take over as he introduced our place of stay.

“This is the Hound Pits Pub, closed for business, half the district marked off as dead from the plague. We’re right under the Lord Regent’s nose and he don’t know a thing.” His voice grew gradually angrier throughout his sentence. It was a sharp contrast from his higher pitch when he sat back up from slouching and continued. “Of course if anyone finds out what we’re up to, the Watch will break in with swords drawn. And now that you’ve escaped, The Lord Regent’s going to be tearing the city apart.”

As he spoke, I looked to my left, to the place he was presenting. There was a large tower, mostly crumbled now, but showed signs of height and strength. Behind the tower was a three or four storey building. From the sign hanging on the wall facing the river, I’d guess this was the pub itself. To the right of that across a flat yard was another building. The fighting pits. This place was by no means grand, but it was small and actually rather hidden. I turned my face to the right of the boat. Across the river and slightly upstream sat Dunwall Tower.

 _We really are right under his nose._ I looked back at Samuel.

He steered the boat carefully around huge pieces of broken building. He seemed at ease though. When the boat rocked, he just flowed along with it. As we passed another large piece of metal supporting, he pulled us into a small cornered area of water. “I’ll take you up to meet Admiral Havelock and the rest of the Loyalists. The Admiral’s a man to be reckoned with. If anyone can help you find that missing girl, Lady Emily, and clear your name, he can” Samuel pulled us up to dock. He stood and stepped off the boat before I even felt stable enough to stand.

I followed Samuel. Before me was a rectangular concrete slab that served as a dock. In the centre of the dock across from where we left the boat were a set of stairs leading up towards the bar portion of the Hound Pits Pub. He walked slowly, but I stayed behind Samuel. He at least knew where to go. At the top of the stairs, I heard a strange noise. It was something I didn’t hear too often. It was… static? I froze. It must have been sudden because Samuel turned around and shot me a very worried look.

But my mind was elsewhere. I was no longer seeing the Hound Pits Pub. I was seeing another interrogation room. It was cleaner than the one I usually stayed in; it was newer. I was in the centre looking at a wall. Shadows of people played in my peripheral vision. But then there was white. Such pain was something I had never experienced. My entire body convulsed. It seemed to be hours that I was put through this. Then it stopped so suddenly. My body went limp and I could make out my hands. There were wires all around me leading to straps on my arms, legs, and even my neck. This was the joy of electricity.

I gasped almost audibly when I felt s somewhat wrinkled hand touch my arm. “Amber?” I flinched back and looked around. I wasn’t being tortured. That was over. “Are you with me?”

I looked down. Then I wiped hidden tears off my face. Horrible flashbacks I signed before thinking he wouldn’t be able to understand.

“Well that won’t happen here.”

I looked at him in surprise. _"You can understand my signing?"_ Before I quite caught his response I heard the same noise that threw me into such a panic a moment before and jumped.

“It’s alright. The guy in there is friendly. Uh. At least he means well.” Samuel pointed to a garage looking door to my left. I walked slightly closer to the noise. Then I just backed up.

 _Later._ I told myself. _This Admiral sounds more interesting than a night of flashbacks._

Maybe it was his smile, but something made me trust the old man. I followed him to one of the doors on the building that looked as though it contained the bar. He stopped outside and turned to lean against the wall next to the door, but I continued through. When I opened the door I paused. _These people…_ I thought. _These people believe me when I say that I'm innocent, that I've been framed. They’ll help me get back at the Regent. These people, as of right now, are my heroes._

But the voice that greeted me as I stepped through was more nasally and rat like than heroic. “So it’s starting, at last, Admiral. We’ve found our final member. Even after six months in Coldridge Prison she slipped out like it was nothing.”

I stepped to my left to try and see the people who were speaking. There was a small man in white dress clothes, and a larger man in Upper City Watch uniform.

The Watchman, the Admiral I guessed, talked with a deep, smooth voice; his voice was far more familiar that a stranger’s should have been. “Yes. Not Surprising. She was the personal bodyguard of the Empress, and the Emperor before her. You’ve heard the stories.”

_People talk about me that much?_

“Yes. I have. It still amazes me that someone--” _Don’t say it…_ “—could get to the Empress and young Lady Emily.”

_Damnit. He said it._

“No one knows the real story, Treavor.” the Admiral interjected. “We all have our suspicions. We’ll know the truth in time.”

The real story… I started doubting my faith in the men that helped me achieve my freedom. _Would these men believe… Could these men believe everything I saw that day? The assassins that teleported, and froze me against a wall, or that it was the Lord Regent…_

No. I had to stop. If I doubted them already, I would never get what I needed. I needed to trust them. I needed to trust that they would believe me for everything I said. I needed an ally.

“She's strong and quick. But I hope she understands subtlety as well.”

Did I? When I came face to face with someone I knew betrayed me, would I be able to hold off on killing them for the sake of information, or for the cause in general? As of now, I wasn’t sure. Before, as Royal Protector, I always followed my orders, whether that be to kill or just get information. But then I wasn’t filled with rage. I wasn’t out for blood from the men that hurt me, that hurt my family. I wanted to believe I could, but I wouldn’t know until faced with someone. I walked towards them.

“This isn’t one of your fancy dress parties.” The Admiral’s tone was harsh. “The reality is that we need men killed- have you ever killed a man?”

“Only with my wit, but it’s a fair point, as always.” He was much quieter, less defensive. “She’ll be here soon and I’m looking forward to meeting her.”

It was only now that the Admiral noticed me. He stood taller and pulled his jacket down straight. “We can continue this later, Lord Pendelton. The star of the hour is here.”


	9. Welcomed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry this has taken so long. This should be okay, but I wrote the first half last year so.... yeah...

I walked toward the men that freed me. They both turned towards me and stood slightly taller. The smaller one, Pendelton, stepped back for a short moment and cringed, then caught himself and stepped forward again. He pulled his arm to his chin and studied me.

“Amber, I’m Admiral Havelock,” he motioned to himself and gave a military bow, “a true servant of the empire, like you. Until the Lord Regent purged those of us who wouldn’t recognise his claim on the throne.” He was now leaning back with his arms crossed, taking his turn at studying me.

“And I’m Lord Treavor Pendelton.” He bowed much lower than the admiral. Then he moved his hands to hold the breast flaps on the front of his coat. “I represent the nobility in our little group, but we all act as equals here at the Hound Pits Pub.”

Meanwhile, the Admiral had picked up a drink. “This is a momentous occasion, Amber. I’m going to come out with it: we’ve been building a coalition of loyalists, aimed at ending the Lord Regent’s tyranny and restoring the throne.” He took a long drink and breathed big. I could tell how many times he had planned and practiced that speech.

Pendelton spoke immediately as Havelock stopped. “At risk of execution, we’re committed to finding young Lade Emily and seeing her crowned as empress.”

“We’ve got big plans.” Havelock raised his drink a bit, and furrowed his brow. If he did it anymore, I was damn near afraid they’d cover his eyes entirely. “We can’t do any of it without you. We need your skills, your ability in a fight. And in helping us, we’re going to help you destroy the men who murdered the Empress”

I shifted from one foot to another and rubbed the back of my neck. These people really were going to help me. I closed my eyes. _This is real._

“Sorry,” Pendelton lean forward a bit until I opened my eyes, “you must be exhausted. We can discuss this further after you’ve recovered. But before you retire, you should introduce yourself to Piero. He’s challenging at times,” He gave something between a smile and a cringe, “but his industrious mind buys him that right.” He bowed low again before he began walking away.

Havelock wasted no time before relaxing and lighting a cigarette, not caring where he blew his smoke. “Yes, Piero’s as much an artist as a technician. He’s going to be crafting the gear you need. Go talk to him and get some sleep.” I started backing up. “We can talk more when you’ve rested.”

He leaned towards the bar as I turned away. _Piero._ _What an interesting name._ Since no one had bothered to tell me where exactly Piero was at the moment, I decided to investigate the area on my own. I walked the way I came, going back out the front to where I heard the electricity. The garage that was closed before was now open before me. Inside was a rather tall man leaning over what looked like a form of lathe. He was very into his work, so much so that when I walked in, it seemed like he didn’t notice me. As I walked closer, I allowed my footsteps to be slightly louder than usual.

He jumped very slightly and didn’t look at me. “I’ll be crafting your weapons and gear.” I guess this turned out to be Piero. “All custom work. For you I will create the tools of a master assassin.” He dusted off his work and then pulled down on the machine. Suddenly it began to shake violently and thunderous roars rolled out.

I pulled back. _What monstrosity from the void is this?_ My mind was not my own again and I fell to one knee. I felt pain in my left arm, a pressure coming from both sides of it. I knew my arm was no longer broken from their torture, but that didn’t help my current panicking.

“No!” _two pounds._ “This cannot happen now! The whale oil tank is empty.”

 _I’m not in Coldridge. I’m at a shut down pub. I’m safe._ I opened my eyes and wiped away my tears as I stood up again.

Piero was holding very tightly on the object he’d been working on. His facial expression made it obvious he was not pleased with being forced to pause his work. He sighed very quietly as the empty tank popped out of his machine. “Will you get a new tank from upstairs, please, while I hold this in place?” I nodded and turned towards the stairs to my left. “Be careful, the oil is unstable. When it explodes there is a terrible mess.”

 _Never mind the casualties._ I passed a table and a shelving unit before reaching the stairs and going up. Before I had completely reached the top I saw the wall in front of me had an interesting design on it. It looked as though someone had burned a large swirl into it. Ignoring that, I continued up the last bit of stairwell and found a bed, a table, a small stove, a trunk, and two wall mounted machines I’ve seen at the tower before. One of the machines had a full tank of oil in it, so I walked to it and carefully lifted it out of the machine. I wasted no time in getting back down the stairs and to the scary machine.

“Perfect!” Piero glanced at me then back at his work. “Now plug it in.”

I walked closer to it. This thing was terrifying. It made the exact same noises as the machine they used in the interrogation room to fracture my arm. I leaned away from it, but held out the tank. The magnet inside took care of the rest and it fit in nicely.

“Perfect! Thank you, Amber.” Once the buzz of the machine was at full sound again, he pulled down on the machine like he had earlier. “Here, see?” I leaned in. “The assassin’s mask. You’re wanted now, so everyone in the city knows your face, but this mask will mean terror to them.” He pulled the mask out of the machine. It truly was terrifying. It looked like someone’s skull, but like it had been broken and patched back together with wire and metal. “Now if you’ll just hold still…” He held up the mask to my face. Inside, the gears and cloth mixed together looked painful.

 _No_. I ducked away from him. I turned to go back outside, but the garage door behind me was shut. How had he done that? And when? I simply looked back at him. _You’re insane._

“The fit must be precise.” He didn’t even hesitate before continuing towards me with the mask still held face height. “It won’t hurt.” I paused. _He’s got to be lying._ I held still anyway as he continued working. When it hit my face, the mask was cold. It felt like a potato sack with metal spikes though. It didn’t hurt, he was right, but it was rather uncomfortable. “There. Can you see normally?” I opened my eyes and shook my head no. “Mmm…” He looked closer, though he was extremely blurry. “Center lens out of alignment.” A small screwdriver appeared in his hand and he twisted in several places, correcting not only my vision, but also the fit on other spots on my face. It was now lighter instead of pulling down on my face. “There. Better now?” I nodded yes. “I can create more for you- upgrades for your gear, weapons, munitions.” He worked more on the lenses, clearing up my vision more to the point that I nearly forgot I was wearing a mask. “But our situation here is desperate. Scavenge the city for valuables and I will resell them on the black market. That should give us the money to craft the things you need.” He backed up and seemed to decide that he was settled with his work. “Tell me what I can make for you.”

I followed him to a table where he laid out some of the things he had already made. Bolts, bullets, grenades, and a few small things that I couldn’t figure out the purpose of. I pointed to the bolts. “Take what you need here, then write down what else I need to make. I can have it done by morning.”

I nodded. _I wonder how good he really is._ I picked up two bolts, six sleep bolts, and capped off the number of bullets in my gun. On the pad he left me, I wrote down ‘ _four sleep bolts.’_

He walked back over to me and studied the mask still on my face. “I’m going to upgrade your optics.” He was about to walk away when he paused and walked back in front of me. “Unclip your quiver.” I did so. “I’ll have you a new one with whatever else you need. Probably about twice the size.”

I wrote down _‘four bolts’_ and picked up the six that were still at the table. My head started spinning, and a small ache began to creep up the sides of me head. _With everything that has happened, it’s a wonder I haven’t passed out from exhaustion._

It seems Piero took notice of my pause in activity. “I will always try to have a good amount of any supplies you might need.” He then stood to face me. “You must be exhausted. I advise that you get some sleep. Your life will get even more difficult soon, you should rest while you can.”

I smiled slightly. Then nodded _yes._

He left me alone and walked upstairs. I figured he was right about the whole sleep idea. I could explore more in the morning. I walked back into the bar. _Surely my room will be upstairs._ Right inside the door was another that led to a stairwell. I took it up and heard more voices.

A young woman’s voice first. “Is that woman dangerous?”

An older man’s voice came next as I neared the second floor doorway. It was rough and tired. “Yes, very much so. But no need to fear. She is here to work with our masters.”

“People say she killed the empress.”

_Everyone says I killed her. And it’s damn near impossible to try and explain the truth._

“Of course she didn’t.” I silently thanked the man as I rounded the doorway. From what I could tell, they hadn’t noticed me. The woman’s back was to me and the man’s head was down. He sighed and shook his head. “People are foolish and believe whatever they’re told.”

She pushed her hair back and gave a big nod. “Okay. If the Admiral trusts her, then so will I.”

I dipped my head back to avoid having to talk to anyone. Then I continued up the stairs. Curious enough, the third floor doorway had been bricked shut. I passed it without putting too much thought into it. The fourth floor appeared to be the last on the way up. I passed the doorway and the first room I came to was empty save for some furniture against the wall. A window to the left had a walkway on it that was built out of cheap building siding. It looked as though it led over Piero’s building and to a door in a very nearby tower. I ignored that and pushed on into the other room. There was a bed set up to the right. Around the room were various standard bedroom items. All I noticed was the bed for the moment.

My head ached. I squeezed my eyes shut and rubbed my temple. I don’t know when he got here, but a man spoke behind me. It took me a bit to realise he had been talking. “This is your room. It was chosen to give you privacy.”

I shook my head to try and ease the pain. By the time I had straightened out, the man was already walking away. Too distracted by pain, I had missed his name. I promised to myself that I would find out the next day. For now, I allowed myself to collapse into the small bed, not even bothering with clothes, blanket, or even my shoes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I wanted to keep Wallace's dialogue in there but I forgot what he said. I kinda cheated my way out of there. Sssshhhh...  
> Please let me know if there are any mistakes.


	10. Marked

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is the first chapter that I had a little more freedom with (unless you count Totured), and the first time our pair meet. I wanted more personality with the Outsider and I like his speech from the debut trailer much better than that in the game. Sorry if it's not how you would see him, but I wanted to make the Outsider pretty much a teasing trickster.

For the first time since Jessamine was killed, I woke without being scared. It was slow and slightly peaceful. I pulled back the light blanket that was spread out on top of me, then paused. _Did I pull this sheet over myself last night?_ The small lantern on the table beside the bed was glowing brightly, lighting up the entire half of the room. As I sat on the right side of the bed with my feet down, I looked around. In front of me, on the far side of the not-so-small room hidden away in the corner, there was a couch. Between it and the wall were rather large paintings, all backwards, leaning against each other. To the left of the couch was a desk. Behind me on the opposite side of the bed between the wall and the doorway was a table and a chair, and to the right of that was a small drawer set and shelf. Yet another lamp was set on the table by the doorway. _Has that always had a door?_

I stood up slowly and walked towards that couch, studying the room as I went. There was another doorway to my right as I neared the couch and paintings. It was bricked shut, similar to the third floor. I noticed now that the couch was covered with a white sheet. _They only really do that for plague victims._ I heard rain.

I circled around to the other far corner of the room. It had been squared off for aesthetic purposes. There was only a bedframe leaning against the wall here, and nothing of interest. It was only as I circled around again towards the door that I really felt something wrong. The room felt much more open than the previous night, and there was a new leak in the ceiling. I watched the water drip from the bucket sitting on a chair to hit the ceiling above.

_Wait._

I looked again, shaking my head to clear it. Water was definitely not supposed to move like that. I stepped cautiously towards the door and lightly pushed. It creaked open the rest of the way on its own. The empty room on the other side was in ruins. The wall where the window had been was almost completely torn down. On the other side now were large stones and a set of stairs. What was previously the sky now held floating islands of landscapes and a thick light-grey mist.

_Something’s not right…_

I walked out past the room and into the open air, avoiding large holes in the floor that led to the same grey mist below. Coming from a pipe below me in the ground was a steady stream of water flowing directly upwards. Past that in the mist was what looked like more water, spinning, holding up a street lamp. Even further out was a small piece of ground holding up a City Watch boat.

_What is this? Am I dead?_

The stair were short. I followed them up, feeling almost pulled. Small pieces of rock were floating through the air, spinning in place or flying through it. At the top, I saw another boat floating in front of me, and another small flight of stairs to my left. A rock no bigger than my fist floated toward me slowly. With two fingers I attempted to push it away. I barely felt it touch me before it spun in a different direction.

_I must be dreaming. Or I really am dead._

This set of stairs was longer, but I felt compelled to continue. Another boat stuck over the stairs, and at the top I saw flat stone. There were posts sticking out of the ground on the far side of the landing, stuck together in an entrance formation.

 _No, not stuck together._ They were simply hovering very near each other. Around me was more and more of the mist. Bluish-grey had completely replaced sky and solid earth. I stepped forward, almost scared.

“My dear Amber.”

I yelped.

Out loud.

I smacked my hand over my mouth and my eyes darted around me confused.

I tried to recompose myself, and crouched down into a defensive position. I swear I’d heard a young man’s voice, but I did not see him. I looked behind me and saw nothing, so I turned forward again. In front of me was a man, but not one I felt compelled to trust. He was floating.

_Which may be why… What in the Void…?_

I stopped, wide eyed. _The Void…? Maybe…_

In front of me, the man smirked.

_Nonsense! Nothing but stories to scare children and keep the Abbey running._

His brow furrowed, but before I really caught the movement he had straightened his face again. He wore a brown coat that looked like what ancient Pandyssian Military wore. Beneath that I saw a white collared shirt. Basic pants and knee high boots completed his outfit. Even stranger than the floating, surrounding him were black tendrils of what looked like smoke. But above all else, it was his face that caught my attention. He was a rather attractive young man, with short brown-black hair and a thin face. But his eyes…

_His eyes are black as nights in a Serkonan vineyard._

In an instant, I knew who was before me.

“What a sad hand fate has dealt you.” His voice was not deep, but smooth. “The beloved Empress dead, and everyone thinks you’re the killer.”

I ground my teeth together and hung my head. _It’s not true…_

When I raised my head again, he was grinning now, more than his previous smirk. “But we know what really happened, don’t we?” I felt that as more of a statement than a question. I perked up a bit, looking to where he had been. _Gone?_ I looked around to my left, then felt him. In my right ear I heard his voice, loud and confident. “You don’t want to end your life to the sound of idiots cheering as your head hits the muck, do you?”

I jumped again, spinning around as I fell on my ass. I was scared. _But I won’t show it._ I stood up again, not bothering to crouch this time. If this was who I thought, it would make no difference if I had a fully stocked armoury at my disposal and he had nothing, I would lose. My face and back as straight as could be, I raised my hand to sign a question.

He had another idea. “Let’s see if we can do better.” He was talking slower and softer, and coming nearer all the while. He had reached me in a blink. “I am the Outsider.” Before I realised what was happened, he was holding my left hand, his palm on the back of it, his face only inches from mine. “And this is my mark.”

Pain. I didn’t know what was happening, but I didn’t like it. I pulled my hand away from him, but he didn’t let go. I fell to my knees, whimpering the entire time, my face disobeying my commands to seem brave. _What is this?_ My chest tightened, my lungs stopped. I couldn’t breathe. It hurt nearly as bad as a night of torture in Coldridge, but concentrated into a two spots, one on the back of my hand, and the other deep in my chest.

He let go. On all fours, it was easy to see the new design that painted my hand. I was panting, and I still heard noises coming from my mouth. _Can I…?_

I saw in my peripheral vision him crouch in front of me. I looked up at him, still out of breath. He leaned in close. “Consider it,” he paused, and smirked yet again, “a gift.” His face was barely a foot from mine.

My breath caught. I couldn’t help but stare into the blackness of his eyes, but I saw nothing in return. My own eyes shut, and pulled myself up onto my knees.

He was walking behind me now, circling me as I stood up. “There are forces in the world and beyond the world, great forces that men call magic, and now these forces will serve your will. But first, you must take a leap of faith." Suddenly, once again, I felt that he was less than a foot from my face. My eyes flew open to meet his teasing countenance.

“Come find me.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Too much? Too little?  
> From here on out, it will still follow the story, but not nearly as closely as how the first nine chapters have. The Outsider will appear much more often and I will add days between some missions. Now it gets fun.


	11. Played

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So the Outsider seems not the same. I'm sorry about that. But the more we see him in the story, the more he will make sense to Amber and us.

_Leap of faith?_

The Outsider had disappeared before saying anything more. I was clueless as to what exactly my goal was, or even what I was doing here in the first place.

 _Great forces that men call magic._ _So what? I can read minds and walk through walls?_

This was obviously a game to him. He must have left behind a clue. I walked to where he had appeared the first time. In front of me was a gazebo. _I know that structure._ Under it was a body. _He thinks everything is just a game._ I strode towards it, barely stopping myself as I crossed a metal grated flooring and realised that these two pieces of land were not connected at all, and only nothingness and mist lay below.

_Leap of faith._

That phrase was caught in my mind and I couldn’t quite solve the riddle of it. _Does he expect me to jump?_ The gap was a good ten paces across. There was simply no way. _But I suppose I’m supposed to put my faith in him. This is insane._

And as I backed up for a running jump, my only thought was, _I’m insane._ I felt the air rush past me and I was reminded of my escape from Coldridge. My hand tingled and glowed a lovely gold colour. Then there was light around me, blinding and cold, and I felt myself surge forward. The ledge was in reach, but I wasn’t prepared for the distance I had crossed in a blink. My foot slipped from the edge of the floating island and I grabbed for any piece of jagged stone I could grip. I found a small crack in the pavement, and dug my fingers in before I fell into void.

 _The Void,_ I corrected myself.

My feet dangled below me as I hung off the side of the oversized boulder. It was like hanging from a cliff. My other hand searched for another crack to hold myself up with, but found nothing. I tried to find footing, but again failed. My fingers failed me and I slipped. I fell. I shut my eyes tight, not wanting to see anything the moment I died.

Then I landed. I looked around me and found that I was exactly where I started my failed running jump. A quiet laugh echoed around me. “Try again.” The Outsider was watching me, toying with me. “See your goal, your destination. If you have no reason for what you do, you will fail every time.”

 _I suppose that makes sense, in an overly-general-outlook-on-life sort of way._ I walked slowly to the edge of the metal ground. That gazebo, the place where Jessamine died, where everything turned to ruin, is my current goal. My hand tingled. I looked to where I wanted to be and held my breath. I loosened the muscles in my legs and curled my left hand into a fist in front of me. I blinked.

There was no rush of air this time. Where I was before, now I simply wasn’t. I had made it to the place I never actually wanted to be again. I looked down at her body and suddenly I was there again, there on the night she died.

_“Mommy!”_

I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to will away Emily’s voice. But all I got in return was Jessamine’s.

_“You’ll know what to do. Right? … Please…”_

“No!” I was on the ground, back in control of my mind, sitting in the gazebo, staring at the corpse of my sister-in-law, and I had yelled out in stress. I felt myself sob, and then heard it with my own ears. I had a voice. _Six months too late._ I pushed wind out of my throat, and mouthed out a word like I had only ever seen and heard spoken, but never done so personally. “Jessamine…” My voice was higher than I expected, and it broke midway into her name. “Emily…” It was hoarse and weak, but it was mine. I pulled my legs out from under me and pushed myself up. This was my first step. This was my leap of faith. As I stood up, I dared myself to study her body and my surroundings. The interior of the gazebo was exactly that of the one at Dunwall tower, but now there was a chest against one railing, and all the area around it gave way to the familiar mist. Her body was spread exactly as I had last seen it. There was a note fallen beside her, covered on one side in blood. I picked it up, holding in a gag from the sight and proximity of my dead relative.

**YOU CANNOT SAVE HER YOU CANNOT SAVE HER YOU CANNOT—**

I ripped the note in rage. _No matter what this situation is to me,_ “It’s a game to you,” I sobbed out. I felt cold and alone, but I knew his eyes were on me. I watched the bits of paper fall to the ground and turn to dust, disappearing before my eyes. “Fine. Let’s play.” I straightened up. _My goal is…_ I walked to the chest and pulled the top open. Inside were sheets and a small bottle filled with blue liquid in it labelled “Piero’s Spiritual Remedy.” _Piero?_ I picked up the bottle and slipped it into one of the pouches on my belt, one near where I kept my Sokolov Formulas. After I set that away, I pulled out one of the sheets and pulled it up over my head, unfolding it in the air above me. After it was straight and flat, I tossed it over The Body. _I need to be done here._

There were only two options as to where to go next: back into the bedroom, or after the Outsider.

_“Come find me.”_

I saw another landing that seemed in reach. There was another gap, but I concentrated on the same things I had to get to this island. Hand out in front of me, breath slow, and body relaxed. Once again, I was there in a blink. _Blinking, huh?_ I did it again to another chunk of land and rock. In front of me this time, however, was not rock. It was a piece of a room. Deciding I was too far to make out the faces of the threepeople I saw there, I blinked again to the edge of the broken floorboards.

“Hello?” I whispered. Then I bit my lip. There was Emily. But she wasn’t here. Neither were the two men with here, one of them grabbing her roughly. This wasn’t reality as I knew it, it was his. I told myself to remain calm. Flying out of Emily’s had was a rolled letter. I held it lightly and broke the seal.

**Amber,**

**I am very sad. They say that you’re dead like Mother, but I’m going to put this note in a bottle and throw it into the river because I do not believe them. Living here is very strange. I do not like it, so please come for me if you can.**

Emily was waiting for me. I moved to my right trying to see her face.

“Watch your step.” The Outsider mused. He wasn’t here physically, but I felt him speaking in my ear.

I looked down. Below my boot was a drawing, very obviously done in the style of a child. It was Emily’s. On it were pictures of animals. Hagfish, river crusts, a black crab, and a cross section of a whale. _Are you on the river?_ I looked up and heard a hum. Loud and sad, it echoed around me, through me. I turned and saw something floating, but not made of stone. The melancholy hum was a song, sang by the great creature of the water. _The great whale._ _The mighty leviathan._ I thought for a moment more, and though it was far away, I looked into the whale’s eyes. _The celestial Outsider._

I turned back to the landing on which I was standing. It was a room, or at least part of one. Two large white circular rugs were on the floor, one of which had a circular couch on top of it, decorated by various potted plants being danced with by a breeze that didn’t seem to exist. I didn’t know any of what I recognised. I couldn’t find her by staying here.

Again my path was clear. With only one way to go, I continued on, walking to the other side of the floating floor. This time, my target seemed a bit further away. As I looked to where I wanted to be and raised my hand, I noticed the design on my hand was barely glowing. It was dull. _It’s too far._ I needed to be smart here. If I ran and jumped, I might fall like before. But I were to stay, I would accomplish nothing. I looked towards the large singing animal on my left. “Will you catch me if I fall?”

The voice answered behind me. “I’m giving you time to learn before I set you out to change the course of history. This one may be a bit of a challenge.”

I turned my head to the side, not actually expecting to see anyone. “History?” I was left alone again. _This is a lesson in magic._ I gave myself space for another running start, repeating my first attempt at blinking. As my feet touched the ground on the next floating boulder, I smiled, knowing I had made it. _I’ll almost say I’m getting better._ There was another chest here, identical to the one in the gazebo, right down to the Remedy. I hid it away with the other. I blinked to the next safe area. It was wood flooring beneath me again. This time, I nearly killed the frozen being before me.

_Damn you Hiram Burrows._

The Regent stood in front of a strategy board of the city. He was in the process of throwing pieces of what looked like children’s building blocks across the board. On the wall, or lack thereof, was a framed map of Dunwall City. _There’s nothing for me here._ I ducked out of the way of flying stones as I kept moving. I didn’t immediately see my next destination. Until I saw the monsters. Land was below me, so I jumped down to the large stone floor instead of blinking. There were two men stilled here. One had a protective hold on the other, and both were about to be killed. This was a scene from a street in the city. Two tallboys, Watchmen standing on mechanical metal stilts with think armour, fired incendiary bolts at the civilians. _Is this what is happening in the city now?_ Tallboys and incendiary bolts were only experimental when I was last in Dunwal Tower. Now they were being used to harm innocent people. Even if they were weepers, should they be killed so mercilessly? But then, I suppose there is no mercy in a place like Dunwall.

To my left I looked again at the leviathan, idly studying the markings on its side. “I guess I’m no better.” Jessamine and Emily flooded into my mind, and anger nearly overcame me. “But for now, I'll focus on revenge.”

My eyes closed. It took a minute for my mind to clear. Thoughts like that weren't like me. I shuddered. _Don't think like that._ But I knew that thought would come again.

I turned forward and came to a cliff. I tried to blink my way on top of it, but it was simply too far. _Maybe if I’m quick…?_ I looked to the rock face, trying to spot a place to grab hold of. Then blinked to the side of the cliff, catching myself before I fell. _Easy enough I suppose._ I pulled myself over the edge and stood, dusting myself off. Moving forward again, I followed a decorative staircase down in a spiral until I came to the broken and twisted end. Then I wasted no time in blinking on to yet another floating island of rock. A candelabra was to my right and lit a corner of what could have been the wall to a house. I ignored that and walked around it. I felt the same pull as when I first left my bedroom. He was close. Two more vertical streams of water poured upwards, and on the other side was a flat surface, fog covering the entire far side, and what looked like another staircase leading off into the distance. I blinked forward.

And there he was. The smoke curled around itself, turning a darker and darker colour until out of blackness he was formed. “In the days that follow, your trials will be great, Amber.” He folded his arms and looked me over. “I wonder if you’re up to it.” He smirked again and seemed to lean back against a non-existent wall behind him. “Seek the ancient runes bearing my Mark in the lonely places of your world and at shrines raised in my name.” He spoke with his hands sometimes, lightly waving one for emphasis, displaying several rings that he wore. “These runes will grant you powers beyond those of others you meet. To help you find these runes, I give you this.” He held up one hand and the smoke solidified above it forming what appeared to be a human heart. “The heart of a living thing, moulded by my hands.” I didn’t feel it, but I was suddenly aware I was holding the heart. I looked down at it, and it already felt off. All over it were pieces of metal, wires, and gears. It wasn’t just a heart, it was a machine. “With this heart, you will hear many secrets,” he crossed his arms again, “and it will guide you toward my runes, no matter how they may be hidden.” He shook his head while he explain this oddity.

“It’s warm…” I whispered to myself.

“Do you expect it to be cold?” I heard the smile in his voice before I looked up at him.

“After it’s been removed, yes.” I sang my words almost sarcastically. I looked up at him. “Should a bodiless heart be warm?”

I heard the click of his boots when he lowered and his feet touched the ground. He walked towards me slowly. “I know you know who I am. You’ve heard the stories. You’ve seen the madness my influence causes in people.” I held my ground, even with the approaching god. “Why do you joke at me?”

I didn’t let myself be scared. It worked, and I looked up at this mysterious figure of myth unafraid. “I don’t see many options. You gave me the voice, I plan to use it.” I was almost proud of myself for a moment.

He smiled, then vanished. “Listen to the heart.” He whispered in my ear from behind me. “Find yourself a rune.”

When I felt only his eyes, I turned around to a chest I had seen before I blinked here. Same as before, I stocked the Remedy and left the chest. I turned my attention then to the stairs. In my hand, the heart began beating. Not fast, but a solid beat. “So you tell secrets, huh?” I commented to the heart beating in my hand.

“This place is the end of all things.” A voice echoed in my head. A very familiar feminine voice. “And the beginning.”

“I see,” I joked.

“All of time is meaningless here. Neither seconds, nor centuries.”

“Alright you can stop now.”

“Someday this place will devour all the lights in the sky.”

I looked up the mist, speaking to the Outsider. “Is this your way of telling me to stop talking?”

Climbing up the stairs and over jagged rocks, I came to be under a metal structure that I recognised to be an old Watch tower. Beyond that was a building tower, laid down completely horizontal. The heart beat was speeding up, this was the right way. I jumped down to lower ground, and then again, until I landed on the outside wall of the building tower. I walked towards the top of it, and along the way found an open window. The tower seemed to lead me nowhere, so I jumped down into the building. Floating pieces of wood, and another street lamp, danced around inside. I walked along the inner wall until I found a path out, which turned out to be another window leading to a chunk of stone face below. When I landed, a chest sat in front of me, and I repeated my usual pattern. The heart was pounding at a much quicker steady pace, and when I turned to my right, it doubled its speed. I could see the shrine now. Long sheets of purple fabric floated out from a point on a landing a distance away. To get closer, I jumped to a lower ledge, then again.

I paused. The next place for me to go was much too far to jump. I would need to blink there, but I didn’t want to leave the heart or risk damaging it if I fell too hard to the ground.

“Cautious, hm?” The Outsider’s voice almost made me jump this time.

I turned, and the smoke was forming something in the air. It was a small bag, barely bigger than the heart with two belt straps. It took a moment to get all my pouches off to fit the heart into a safe place along the cloth belt I stole from a guard in my escape. My hands were now free, allowing me to blink twice to reach my point in front of the shrine. I looked again at it, and realised how impressively large it was now that I was closer. I felt a thud on my side where I had put the heart. Even if I wasn’t holding it now, it was telling me I was close to my rune.

There was a small table set up and surrounded by lanterns. The sheets of fabric seemed to verge on where the rune was floating, spinning around with smoke billowing off of it. I stepped forwards, and snatched it from its spot in space. It was the size of my hand and let of a singing sound. Not like the whale’s singing, but more like something between a hiss and a growl. I held it in one hand, and touched it lightly with the other, noticing how it weighed nearly nothing. It was very obviously made of bone, but it was incredibly smooth on the white parts. The carvings were deep, and the entire rune was held together by two crossed straps converging in the back. My and softly glowed as I lightly grazed the top of the rune.

I was too busy looking down at the rune to notice the Outsider sitting on the small table where the rune had just been. “How you use what I have given you fall upon you, as it has to the others before you.” He cocked his head to the side. “Revenge may seem sweet, but your outcome may be bitter. Just as mercy may seem kind on your soul, but can leave those around you stranded in danger.” He looked into the distance to his right. “And now I return you to your world.”

I glanced up. “Wait, what?”

I looked back at me and furrowed his brow. He almost looked confused. “The void is not the place for humans.”

“Your fault for bringing me here. I have questions.” I took a step towards him and he took one towards me off his perch. There wasn’t room for another person between us. I felt the urge to step back, but I wanted a chance to ask my question, and I knew stepping back would be weakness and disappointing in his eyes. And those eyes were currently telling me to shut up. I spoke with my hands, waving and clenching my fists, even signing some words. “Tell me you’re joking. This is my life you’re talking about. This stuff that seems so distant and irrelevant, this is all I have in my time. You come and give me a chance at getting what I’ve begged for over the last six months and expect me to just figure it out? If you know me so well, you know that won’t work. I need answers.”

He smiled down at me like I was naïve.

 _I’ll bite._ “You can’t leave me alone in this. I can’t battle alone against these men who abuse their power.” I held my arm out at power, waving around to the invisible men I was talking about.

His face dropped. Had I said the wrong thing? “Abuse their power…” he whispered softly, bitterly, trailing to silence. He reached out to pull my marked hand up and hold it sandwiched between both of his. The mark was glowing and it was warm, but not painful like when I received it. “For now, just know that I will be watching.” His gaze met mine. “With great interest.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm taking bits of things heard from developer commentary and adding it in with the stuff we see in the game when it comes to the Outsider. But then I'm melding that with my own views on how I wish he were.  
> Amber is another story. I've had this OC for a while and she is very clumsy and sarcastic, but focused. I'm toning down the clumsiness a bit in this fic but she will be very sarcastic still, especially to the Outsider because he isn't straight with her all the time.  
> Please let me know if I should change anything. I'd love feedback.


	12. Watched

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So my computers broke, the repairmen lost it, got a new one, broke that one, then couldn't install Word on yet another one. So finally here I am. Yet there has been a family death so they might be slow before I finally pick back up in the story. 
> 
> Eh... This chapter sucks. Ignore it if you want. It prolly won't make a difference.

A blanket fell off me as I flew to sit up. _What in the void happened?_ Then I remembered. I remembered the void. _Such a strange dream…_ I sat still for a few moments, allowing myself to calm down. The last time I woke up, I hadn’t felt scared. It had been slow and relaxed. But now I was back to waking up like I was in prison. I was once again afraid.

I heard quick footsteps in the room to my left. Then I saw a woman’s head in the doorway. “Was that you?” She walked in the rest of the way and smoothed her apron.

My right hand started to ache and I looked to my right. The table was knocked sideways and the lantern was shattered on the floor. I nodded. Then I remembered my words. I opened my mouth to say “Yes.” Nothing. I couldn’t speak.

“Ah. Well my name is Lydia. I’m the head maid in this establishment. If you’ll leave that, I’ll clean it up once the room is clear so I’m not in your way.” She bowed and turned on her heels to leave the room.

I reached down and finished pulling the blanket off my legs, wondering again for a moment how it had gotten on my in the first place. I rubbed my eyes as I stood up and walked to the sink. The water squeaked on and I washed my face. _This is my chance at changing Dunwall. Rip it down and start anew…_

I froze in the middle of towelling my face. _No._ This would not be my chance to change Dunwall. It’s not my job to save it. It’s the Empress’s job. _Mine is to save and protect her._ I breathed deep into the towel, hiding my face from the world as if it would help me escape to a happier place.

“Attention citizens of Dunwall!...”

But there is never an escape. My hands slammed down on the lip of the sink and my mouth opened in a silent shout. _What is wrong with the world?!_ I was damn near panting. Filled with rage, I could only think to myself _it’s all my fault._ I knew if I had been faster, stronger…

I opened my eyes and stared down at my hands. Hand, actually. The mark stared back at me, reminding me that I had experienced no dream. The black mark was a statement that shouted to me that while the past can’t be changed, I now hold the power to do what I should have done. _To protect Emily._

 _I need to stay calm_.

I listened to the repeating citywide announcement echo through empty streets as I finished preparing myself for the day. I also strapped a short blade that I had found near my bed to my thigh. As much as I needed these people to help me, I would not trust them until I knew them all better. Part of me knew that I needed to trust them, too. However, after recent events, I couldn’t even trust reality anymore. Preparing for the worst was in my nature, and after the Tower, so was preparing for worse than the apparent worst.

I walked through the building back down the same way had come up the day before. No one was in sight until I made it to the bottom floor. Havelock was seated in a booth with a young servant serving him a drink before walking away to tend to her duties. Instead of walking to him, I stepped outside to see the sun was high in the sky already. It had to have been noon by the time I woke up.

In the tower, I always had a goal. A meeting to attend with my sister-in-law or guarding her walk through the gardens gave me purpose. Even if I started because of my brother, I respected her enough to stay when she asked me to be her Royal Protector. It was an honor. Someone of my origin would have never been given the position without a former relation to the royal family, or at least unreasonably excellent skill. While my brother had been raised among the politicals and bureaucrats, I had been born to a lumberman’s wife, though not to the lumberman, and shortly later raised on the streets in Serkonos. Then the Blade Verbena Duel pushed me into the Grand Guard. To grow so much and be found by my brother two years later was a miracle. I had been given a chance at doing something worthwhile. That life kept me busy, kept me working.

Wandering was new to me. It would be days before I would heal enough to go into the city to begin my search for Emily. I didn’t like walking around without any idea of what to do. While my mind kept listening for the sound of shuffling papers or heels on marble, I studied the water around the pub. I remembered a time when the waters ran clear, when it was safe to swim in and drink the water. The safest think to drink now was anything from a sealed bottle, and definitely not the water.

I couldn’t even see my reflection in the river as I sat down at the edge of the makeshift dock. The murk served only to remind me of how many unidentified corpses had been dumped in the river, so I looked instead to the skyline of the opposite side of the river. Dunwall tower stood out prominently, followed by the clock tower.

Before I got a chance to study anymore of the city, a voice made near jump out of my skin. “It’s easy to forget we’ve someone new at this… establishment.” The boatman wasn’t looking at me while he talked. Instead, he was walking towards the small motorboat with a shovel. “You look like you could use someone to talk to.” He paused for a moment, then furrowed his brow. “Poor choice of words. But I’m sure you know what I mean.”

I smiled at his stumble. Pendelton was too stuck up, and the Admiral too stiff, but Samuel seemed so human. It was something I hadn’t seen in since my time in Karnaca while watching travellers lose their way, and most of the time, their wallets. I worried for him. He was too nice. It would get him killed.

“You don’t seem too happy about something. Might not be my place to pry, but if you’d like help with whatever it is…”

I stood slowly so as not to hurt my already sore muscles. I didn’t feel like explaining my worry for someone I barely knew. Instead, I looked for a way to keep myself busy. I reached my hands out towards the shovel he had in his hands. It took him a moment to realise I was offering to help, but them he handed the rusted metal to me. I stepped on to the boat and leaned over the edge a bit.

“Part of me is afraid to start an undertaking like this.” The boatman stepped into the boat and sat towards the front near the controls. His voice was gravelly, but he talked with a bounce in his voice like a song. Out of the corner of my eyes, I saw him unroll a small floor mat and spread it. I smiled as I hacked away and the small creatures clinging away to the underside of the boat. “I once served the empire, and now, in a way, we’re committing treason against it.”

I turned to him with a smile, raising my hands to sign. _“It’s expected from a foreigner, and especially a Serkonan._ You _still have time to turn back at least.”_ Serkonans weren’t pictured as dangerous, but our relaxed nature makes the other Isles think we’d betray them if it were presented as the easier solution to a problem.

“Huh. If it means saving that little girl Emily, and helping save the City, treason doesn’t seem too bad.”

The sun was high when Lydia announced there was food almost ready for me. I wanted to ask her about Samuel, but not only was there no way to ask, Samuel didn’t seem bothered at all that he was not welcomed into the Pub for food. I handed the shovel back to Samuel. _“Just about finished.”_

“Thank you for your help.” He lips slightly curled into a smile.

I walked across the dock after Lydia. She was an older woman dressed in plain maid clothing. Her accent was nearly gone, but I caught a hint of one when she spoke. The formality in her voice was forced, and I even wondered what she was like when she wasn’t trying so hard.

Back inside the Pub, I took a seat at one of the tables and in an instant there was a small bottle of what I suspected to be rum being set down in front of me. In my surprise I jumped and smacked my knee on the bottom of the table. I heard a small, manly laugh across the table and looked up to Lydia to see if she had heard the same disembodied chuckle. She showed no reaction except to my sudden kick to the table. I looked quickly across the table once more and it almost looked for a moment like black smoke was dissipating.

My mind jumped to the black smoke surrounding the Outsider in my dream. _Not a dream. A visit._ I was still slightly perplexed. I had been in the void. With a figure of myth.

But that figure of myth was real, and it made sense that he would keep an eye on me and what I did with the mark. After all, he even told me he would be watching. _With great interest._

 _“Creep.”_ I mouthed it and thought it loud, hoping he heard.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is awful and I didn't like it. It's hard for me write her. I'm not sure why. I'm trying to make sure she seems like she's struggling with grief and such, so she goes back and forth between rage and a calm state.
> 
> Also I'm running out of chapter titles. I had some planned but my storyline changed a bit. Any ideas?


	13. Scared

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Eh.

The day was coming to an end. I had accomplish nearly nothing outside of meeting Cecilia and Callista. They both seemed kind enough, although Cecilia was pessimistic and Callista didn’t really stop and talk to me. I didn’t blame her, and I was surprised when she signed “hello” as she passed.

There was no mirror in my room, so my new task proved slightly difficult. I had found a few bottles of black dye. With my current hair color, people would easily recognise me, even with a hood or mask. That had to change. I snatched a tall bar stool from downstairs and pulled it under me in front of the sink. I was in my prison shirt and some shorts I found when I returned to the attic. After tying about half of my hair behind me, I covered my hands in some clear jelly I had borrowed from Piero. Slowly, I scooped some dye to put on a small section of my hair.

“There are easier ways to change your look.”

I jumped. A big chunk of dye dropped onto my thigh. I looked back behind me at where the voice originated. There was smoke, and the Outsider. He wasn’t looking at me, instead leaning his back on a wall and glaring out a window. His features always seems serious, but he looked downright angry.

I wiped my leg off. It would stain. After, I turned back around and signed to the myth. _“I need quick. Not easy.”_

I think he rolled his eyes. “You will do what you wish, and I cannot change that, nor do I wish to. I am simply giving you options. Such as asking.”

_“And will you?”_

“No.”

 _Why did he have me ask then?_ It was my turn to roll my eyes, and I turned around to face the sink again, returning to my earlier task. The dark spot on my leg tingled, and I wondered how safe this goop really was to put near my face.

“Why do you disrespect the one who has given you so much power?”

There was black smoke curling around me. It was more like a mist than anything. It was thick enough to drown in. I heard no footsteps, but with the darkness licking at my skin, I knew he had moved close behind me. I dropped the jar of dye on the lip of the sink and raised my arms to sign at him.

But he gripped my right arm just below the jelly and pulled me up and around to look at him. “Why?”

I blinked, and instinctively pulled back in fear. I had overstepped. He was inches from my face. One hand was on my arm and he was using the other to lean on the sink on the other side of me. I was cornered. He sounded enraged, and I expected his face to look the part. But it didn’t. He looked angry still, but… calm? There was another emotion in his eyes that didn’t fit. I questioned his intentions in my mind. What reaction did he want? What was he wanting me to feel?

Shame

He was disappointed that I wasn’t as interesting that he hoped. I looked at him. Black smoke curled around us and in that darkness was a light, though not a bright one. It was just a splash of color, but the violet was there. It wasn’t coming from anywhere.

After a quick moment of thinking, I realised that it was coming from somewhere. It was the Void. He was pulling it around us into this world. This was a new level if incredible that I was incapable of appreciating while still so fearful of this being. I decided to try saying something. My voice shook as I spoke. “Do… you regret it?”

“You may not be entertaining yet, but you will be. I have seen what will happen, every possibility, and I know you are the one who will open doors to the city’s future, whatever that future may hold. My mark is the key you will use to unlock those doors. You are _infuriating_ with your complete lack of deference. But I suppose patience is a virtue.” He moved even closer. “One that I am not known to possess.”

He let my arm go and I dropped, almost falling off my stool. I was terrified. It was like my time in prison. I have never been a physically strong person, and it’s not hard to overpower me when any move I make is punished by the guards. But there were no guards in this instance. There was only an omnipotent being toying with my life and the life of my only remaining family member.

I looked around the now empty room. After a few moments of feeling safely alone, I sat up straight and began my task a final time. My hair was tangled so spreading the dye wasn’t easy. It took two bottles just to get all my hair lightly covered. I had failed to account for my shoulders when preparing, so they were black where my goo covered hair rubbed. After my hair was saturated by a third bottle, and after light rub over my eyebrows, I was satisfied. It would take an hour at least to make sure the color set it enough so that it didn’t rinse out next time it rained. I stood and walked around the room looking for a distraction while I waited. I had accomplished nothing during the day, and now it seemed I would accomplish just as little tonight. The air was cooler near the windows. It drew my attention outside. I walked through the rooms toward the stairs but stopped at the window just before them. There was a walkway leading over the top of Piero’s workshop and continuing on to the tower. From what I understood, Callista stayed in the tower alone. I stayed away from the tower so as not to disturb her, but I still went down the walkway. At the far edge of the workshop roof I sat down with a thud.

The city seemed so quiet. I supposed it was. The only people permitted outside of their homes were the City Watch Guards. The rest of the citizens cowered in their homes. Neighbors falsely reported neighbors to keep on the good graces of the guards. The Watchmen used their authority to get payback on anyone who did them wrong in the past. Rats overwhelmed what once were parks and schools. _The city isn’t dying; it’s already dead._

“Do you really believe that?”

I jumped and slipped off the edge of the roof. My human instinct to scream took hold as I fell, but did not interrupt anyone. My foot touched an air duct and by reflex I pulled my body towards it. I barely caught my butt on it, stopping my fall to the ground. This was not without sound and most certainly some pain. _That’s going to bruise._ My short fall echoed around me. I looked up to where I sat just a moment ago. I saw black eyes and a smirk.

I rolled my eyes and leaned against the wall. My breaths were deep and full of relief. _That definitely could have been worse._

“You haven’t answered me.” The Outsider appeared in a puff of smoke, standing at my side.

I raised my arms. He grabbed the same arm as earlier and I pulled back in fear. He raised his other hand and help up one finger. The violet showed again and I felt lighter.

“Speak.”

I decided my best course of action at the moment was to go along with what he wanted. My mouth slowly and clumsily formed what I thought in my mind. “What hope… is… there?” Again, my voice was high and hoarse. It shook still. I was slow, but I was speaking. “No one… is doing anything.”

“You will, will you not? If you won’t, then why have I given you my mark?” He spoke slow and deliberate, and his voice commanded authority.

“Well, of course I plan to. But what if—“

His grip on my arm loosened. He now waved the other arm as he spoke. “Enough! What if you are caught and tortured by Overseers? What if you are shot down in a brothel? Fall from a bridge while running from guards? Blown to bits at a party? Eaten alive by rats in a tower, betrayed, captured by Wha—“

“If you’re trying to reassure me,” I interrupted, “you have a bad way of doing it. Overseers? Brothel? A party?! What in the void do you expect me to be doing?”

“What you’re told.” His eyebrows lowered in anger, and his hand squeezed my arm tighter again. Then he let it go, but kept his hand lightly on my forearm. “But how interesting can you really be if you are not motivated?”

“So why are you here? Telling me ways I might fail at… whatever it is I’m going to do isn’t really a way to motivate me!”

“You aren’t listening then. Terrible things happen every day, and they will continue to happen. But you have been given everything you need to accomplish everything you want." He smiled, but I could tell from his eyes he was frustrated. "You aren't understanding that." He paused, closed his eyes, and it looked like he took a breath. When he opened that he was calm again. "I’m not asking you to succeed, to save lives or end them, I’m only asking for a show.”

I sighed. I had no one to rely on. The Outsider wanted entertainment, The Loyalists wanted an empress, and the rest of the city wanted freedom. Only I was vying for a new city.

I shut my eyes tight. _Not my place._

“Or is it?” The Outsider faded from sight with those words and only a bit of curling smoke remained “You can do whatever you want. However, nothing is without a price.” I sat with my back flat against the wall and stared out at the river. “Let’s start the entertainment… Now.”

I felt a hand brush back some of my hair before vanishing. I looked around for him. After concluding he had indeed left me alone, I relaxed. Maybe now I would have a moment of peace. Time passed, and I saw Samuel walk to his boat and start moving things around inside it. Disturbing him was probably not for the best. Then again, Cecilia told me that I’m the first person he’ll really talk to. I looked down below me. The ground was surely no more than fifteen feet below me. I turned around and put my hands on the edge of the vent shaft, then lowered my body down. Hanging from the side of a building was new. I dropped down softly. This little patch of land was new to me as well. I walked back towards the wall and out towards the front of it. The steps to the dock were to my right and I followed them down. Before walking up to Samuel, I pulled a thin string out of my pocket and tied up my hair in a knot. It was still wet, which was good, but it stayed in its place. I wiped my hands on my shorts and paused. The goo was gone. My hair was wet with water. It was clear.

I turned away from Samuel and the docks and took off in a sprint towards the pub. I pulled around to the stairwell and went to the second floor. When I reached the door to the guest beds, I slowed my pace and lightened my footsteps. The bathroom was my destination, and I successfully snuck in without bothering anyone. I crept to the mirror.

 _Well, that’s not the right color._ My hair had most certainly changed color, but it wasn’t black. I took the twine out, letting my hair fall, and behind me I saw smoke again. I closed my eyes as a hand appeared and smoothed one side of my hair and smoke curled along the rest of it. When I opened my eyes, my face was surrounded by white. My hair had its usual curliness, but it completely lacked color. It paled my face and made me look even skinnier than before. _It makes me look dead._

The Outsider leaned towards my back and looked at me in the mirror over one shoulder. His hands were on my shoulders and he whispered softly into my ear. “Truly spectral.” And with everything went black.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's getting even harder to write these two. I've been on a Dragon Age kick, so Dishonored is tough. I still can't tell how I want to write the Outsider. Right now he is a moody child. Amber is scared and sarcastic which, if you have ever tried to write that lovely combination, is really fucking hard. 
> 
> Btw I don't have any beta readers so... There are a ton of mistakes that I'm always going back and changing in previous chapters. If anyone sees any, feel free to point them out. That includes lore. I've changed some things on purpose, but I don't know a lot more.


	14. Equipped

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't like the name Amber anymore. That sucks.
> 
> If you ever see me write "the fade" instead of "the Void," I'm sorry. I've been playing all the Dragon Age games lately and I have had to erase the damn word so many times in this fic so far...

The only thing I felt as I woke up in my bed once again was anger. Maybe a little embarrassment, but almost entirely anger. _I am not a toy._ But he didn’t care. To him, I was a pawn in a game. My hair was in my face. My body was sore. _Why can’t anything ever be easy?_

There was a knock on a wall from behind me and I turned slowly. Lydia was standing with a pitcher, glass of water, and a rag. “Welcome back to the living,” she said with sarcasm and a smile. “You’ve been asleep for days, barely awake enough to eat or drink.”

I jumped up. _Days?_ I looked around the room in confusion. Everything was the same except some new clothes sitting on furniture, like I had just gone to sleep last night. The bottles of dye were still sitting near the sink where I had left them. _Maybe this dye is more unsafe than I thought._ Then I gave it a second thought. _Or maybe the Outsider is._

“Wallace has made breakfast if you feel up to eating.” Lydia offered. “It’s not the best meal, but he sure has made good work of what we’ve got available. Everything will be downstairs when you’re ready.” She left the water on the table near the doorway and left through the doorway.

I sat on the edge of the bed and rubbed my head as if that would clear any thoughts. _Days._ I stood and looked around the room for the other set of clothes I had been given when I came to the pub. Everything was neatly folded in a room through another doorway I hadn’t yet explored. It was a small hallway with a door leading to steps to the roof on the far side. Before changing my clothes I walked outside to breathe. The air was dirty and I wondered if I could get the plague by breathing so deeply, but I supposed it was better than the musky and chemical smell inside the pub. The sky above me was purple and orange and I could hear ships leaving the “safety” of the river and heading out to sea. To my right was the river and to the left below me was a blocked off street. _I bet that wraps around the pub._

My time outside was short, but I knew I needed to start moving around and getting back into my routine of training today, even if I was sore from Outsider only knows. _Literally._ After I changed I headed to the stairs. Before I got to the stairwell I noticed Callista stepping down from the window. She noticed me and I smiled at her. She didn’t say anything at first, but smiled in return. “Amber, I apologize for signing to you the other day. I was under the impression you were deaf, and not mute.”

I could sign with her, which was such a relief to me. _“It’s no problem. I was only surprised you can understand me.”_ Before Jessamine was… Before, I could always talk to her, or my brother, and even Emily understood some. As much I loved talking to my brother about most things, Jessamine was fluent, and she had a higher level of intelligence with her words. Outside of my family, I would generally need a translator. My time across the Isles searching for a cure for the plague allowed me to meet many of them.

Callista turned to walk down the stairs and continued talking. “If I may…” She glanced up for a response. “You’ve not always been mute, correct?”

I nodded. _“’Accident’ when I was fourteen.”_ I over emphasised my movements on the word “accident.” I knew full well I was targeted, but the Guards that did it denied knowing he was hurting me. Years later, I commanded his unit. I smiled to myself. Never bothered with revenge though. The street rat that had a higher rank than him didn’t need to. I thought about my current situation and the situation of the entire city. _Maybe I should have._ Maybe it wouldn’t have changed anything. Or maybe… Just maybe… I felt a familiar thought arise within me. _Revenge solves everything._

I blinked. _Damn I scare myself._

Callista had turned back around and continued descending the stairs. At the bottom Lydia looked up from cleaning off a table and smiled at me. “Glad to see you join us. Might have started worrying soon.”

I sat with a smile at the table she finished clearing. After a few moments, I smelled a familiar scent. Blood sausage, and what I guessed was a bit of whale meat, was set in front of me on the table by Cecilia. Without a word she left and disappeared from sight around a corner. She didn’t talk much around others. My stomach growled and I ignored any thoughts except food. I tasted a bit of home in the sausage.

“How are you injuries faring, Amber?” Havelock walked from behind me and sat down across the table. A drink was placed in front of him before he had completely hit the booth.

I nodded. This man would never understand my signing.

“It’s almost time to put our plan to action. You should prepare.” He drank half his whiskey in one gulp.

 _Reminds me of a true Watchman._ I worried about not being ready in time. Then I worried about everything the Outsider said to me. Everything bad that could or even would happen… One thing that he said stood out to me. _“Betrayed.”_

I stopped eating my food. _Can I trust these people?_ I shook my head. I’ve had that thought before and it didn’t do me any good. If I am I to be turn on by them, it will be after I have served my purpose. There were easier ways to kill me, such as leaving me in prison one more day. They won’t kill me yet.

But that though gave me little comfort. It still leaves me getting killed eventually. I closed my eyes and pushed my plate away. I was no longer hungry. I set my forehead on the table and sighed. I felt eyes on me. I probably looked tired, which really didn’t fit seeing as I just slept for two days. And I hadn’t even done any work yet. I opened my eyes with my head still on the table. My hair was around my face. _Hm. Maybe that’s why they’re staring at me._

“Are you feeling well? Perhaps some exercise will help. You’ve been asleep for a long time.” Havelock was probably the one staring at me. I didn’t want to look. His voice was deep and relatively smooth for how much I’ve seen him smoke. He was generally good at hiding any emotion from his words, but now I could hear something in his voice. It was the same thing I heard in the Outsider’s voice as he pinned me against the sink. My stomach felt suddenly light as I thought about that night. I raised my head without looking up. _What the shit?_ Last time my stomach did flips, it was while I travelled with a girl I had a crush on. My eyes flew open. _No. Just stop. It’s not happening. Not the Outsider. Nonononononono-_

Havelock really wanted me to get moving. “Perhaps some air, at least?”

I did my best to nod and slid my way out of the booth. At least some exercise would provide a distraction from those terrifying thoughts. Outside was Samuel. He was working away at his boat, as usual, until he looked up at me. I saw him do a double take and then wave. I smiled and waved back. Then I took off between the pub and Piero’s workshop in a jog. At the end of the tiny alley there was a metal gated door that was apparently left unlocked. I looked left and right. This was most likely the street I guessed wrapped around the building. To the left was the tower. _Probably can’t access the upper floors from here. No need for a walkway on the roof otherwise._ There were buildings across the street, but they all had red on the doors. _Plague._ I reminded myself to avoid going in those buildings. Ever. I moved on to my left and followed the road until it crossed into the other at the far end of the pub. Left was a roadblock. Farther up the road to the right was another, but I continued to it anyway. I smack the wall with my hand when I reached it. I looked around on the ground and spotted a rock. Using it to scratch a line into the metal road block, I marked lap one. Then I turned and followed my path back to the river side door of the pub.

Voices echoed around me at the intersection of the streets and I could make out Havelock complaining about me in his usual deep, throaty voice. “I’ve heard so many stories, but I expected something more impressive. She’s slept most of the time she’s been here.”

I passed through and kept jogging through the first yard and up a few steps. I tripped over the last miniature step and barely caught myself. _I’m so out of practice._ My feet managed, and they carried me across the upper yard to ta platform on the far side. It was metal grated and stood over the river and against a wall of another building. The building looked like it was a part of the Hound Pits. I hit the far rail with a flat hand and turned back, following my path around the pub several times. After my fourth lap I laughed to myself. _Shit, I’m already panting._

I kept running until finally I was done marking twelve lines on the wall. Each time I passed, I heard Pendelton and Havelock exchange words of disappointment about me. _I think they’re forgetting my six months in Coldridge Prison._ Even as I thought this, however, I felt that same disappointment in myself. I was once the Royal Protector, but now I can’t even finish half a morning run without panting. My body ached and I couldn’t tell why. _How long does it take muscle atrophy to kick in?_

I passed by the workshop when the large metal door opened up. Piero said nothing to me when I slowed, only turned back and started working at one of his tables. I hesitated before walking into the building behind him. My steps were purposefully loud. As a street rat, I learned to be quiet when relieving people of their wallets. It was easier when they didn’t see or hear me. Less painful that way. For me. In Dunwall, or anywhere really, people tended to not appreciate being snuck up on, so wherever I went, I needed to focus on stepping loud. I walked to the side of the table that Piero was working at.

He still jumped in surprise and dropped a long metal tool. It burned the table as it hit. “O-oh. I didn’t see you.” He stuttered at first and adjusted his glasses to see me better. “Haven’t seen you for some time actually. H-how are you feeling?” He held his glasses higher than usual to study me before standing. “I gave Lydia some potion to help you recover from any injuries you acquired during your escape. Hopefully they were of use?” He barely paused before walking over to the stairs and following them up. “I noticed you didn’t have any potions written down on your list, or with the other items you gathered. So I took the liberty of gathering a few of my own,” he stopped his words with suddenly clenched teeth and nearly growled, “and the Admiral has requested I give you some one Sokolov’s formula as well. However, I do not have the formula. I do not carry such things with me.”

I nodded. There were rumours saying things were… rough between them. I tended to ignore drama, so I did indeed ignore the feuding natural philosophers. The workshop was a lot more cluttered than yesterday… _No, it was days ago._ As I looked around upstairs, I noticed it was mostly small tools and supplies such as bolts and empty potion bottles. On the table in front of the large window was my sword. It had been cleaned. I picked it up and took my time to appreciate it. It was honestly a work of art. The handle pulled apart to release the blade and came together to lock it. I flipped it about a few times trying to adjust to it. Retracting blades were new to me.

“My expertise is not limited to natural science. Engineering is simple enough to excel at as well.” He wasn’t looking at me, but I could hear in his voice how satisfied he was with his work. Piero was a genius, and he definitely knew it.

I closed the blade and set it down. Looking around more, it seemed he had all my equipment here. I had thought I left it in my room, but apparently not. Everything was here, right down to the belt I had stolen off a guard.

“I suppose you’ll be wanting to practice with all your equipment on?” I nodded in response. “I have a something I’d like you to try out for me. Amazing. I had no thought of it before, but it was in a dream that I started to think that you would need more than just a mask for a disguise. If a woman started killing people just after you escape from prison, even a commoner could make that connection. People need to be confused. And I think...” Piero was talking with his hands and smiling a bit. I bet he didn’t know I was there anymore, and he was just talking to talk. He started to hum down his words and look around his workshop. Digging through all drawer, he was searching for something. Probably that disguise. “Ah!” He pulled out a large coat. At first, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. When he handed it to me, I then saw what was different. It was heavily padded, the shoulders especially, and it was completely shapeless. “I believe this will be sufficient in hiding your true figure?” I noticed for a moment that Piero spoke in a similar manner to the Outsider. Every word was sounded out carefully. But between them, Piero spoke in a much higher voice, higher than my own in fact, and it was through his nose.

I took the heavy cloth from him and twirled it around to put it on. It wasn’t heavy on my arms, but it certainly did weigh me down. I would be slower than usual wearing this. The arms were long, but didn’t cover my hands. I lightly clapped my hands together and motioned to them in question.

“Gloves! Yes!” Piero spun around to look through more drawers. After a moment, there were two thick gloves being held in front of me. But as I put them on, the fingers surprised me. The palm and arms were thick and rough, but the fingers were thin and light. They were almost silky. “Callista is finishing sewing some parts of them, but I’ve also made some boots for you.” He sighed. “I think that’s all I can provide at the moment. Bring me more supplies and I can work wonders.” He nodded and left me.

I smiled. _Haven’t felt silk in quite some time._ It was time to train though. I strapped on everything I had scoured during my prison break. The belt held almost every pouch, and what didn’t fit on was probably too heavy for me to need anyway. I looked around my waist for a place to carry my gun. Eventually came the conclusion that I would need another belt. On the table sat a leather gun holster and a plain leather strap. The designed burned on them looked as though they matched the ones on the cloth belt. It would have to work. I made sure to loop the strap underneath my belt on my left hip, but it fit perfectly over my right shoulder. The holster had a snap button on it and was tight around the strap. It was enough to make it stay up around mid-waist.

I was still in shorts from a couple days ago. After I trained today, I promised to scrub down well. In the attic I had seen some pants on the couch in the corner. They would most likely be better to wear out in the city. _I need to wear everything I will in the city. If I can’t do it here in practice, I definitely can’t wear it out there._ I kept the mask off, but carried it with me to my room.

Cecilia passed me on the stairs and damn near had a heart attack. She shrieked and flattened herself against the wall with her head down. “I-I-I’m so sorry. You looked almost like a ghost in that outfit. I’m not used to seeing assassins walk through the halls.”

_Assassin._

I smiled as I continued up the steps. I had no time for this. I wasted my other days here and slept off the last two. Today might be the last day I had to prepare. It would not be put to waste like the others. Nearing my room I felt uneasy. I thought I heard my heart pounding out loud. _That’s impossibly loud._ Entering the room showed me how right I was. On my pillow sat a human heart, clockwork ticking, pounding away. My heartbeat matched the organ on my bed.  _Ah, well, thank you, you son of a-_

“I come bearing gifts.” That’s when I saw the smoke. The Outsider chuckled. “ _More_ gifts I should say.”

By now I learned that when I saw smoke, I could talk. “They include a human heart being place where I lay my head?”

“Simply making sure you saw it.” His disembodied voice was slow, and he sounded out every word. “But that was already yours. If you are going to change the world, you need to know how to use your powers. And as I see you struggling to run around a building, I realise that you will need more help than I original offered.”

It was only now that the shiny statuettes and chunks of… bone… jumped into my sight. “Oh please explain.” I said sarcastically.

He materialised across the room and picked up one of these pieces of bone. “You’ve seen these before.”

I nodded without saying anything. The Overseers would bring these along with runes to me as evidence of “corruption” and demand action against those who possessed them.

“Proximity to these charms allows your power to draw more directly from the Void.” He was staring at one intently, rubbing his thumb over the front of it. “They each affect you differently.”

I walked along the wall and picked up one of the ones on a small lamp table. The moment I touched it, my breaths became deeper. “Good lungs.” I don’t quite know where the words came from, but I knew it was related to the bone charm.

“They sing to you, just like the runes do. They will tell you how they help. But beware their power. They are stronger than you, and until you can outmatch them, you would do well to watch their numbers. They are stronger in groups.” He evaporated and reappeared near me, close enough to touch. “I will offer one more thing to you, Amber. Tonight you will be brought into the Void. Use your time there to train with what I have given you.” Gone.

 _What, are these things alive?_ I almost stopped myself from thinking that. This was the Outsider. He would find a way to make a rock overpower me just for his own entertainment. I walked around the room and picked up each one individually, studying them and listening at the same time. After I figured out what each one could do for me, I decided that three would be a good start. Part of me wanted to pick up all twelve, but the Outsider wouldn’t lie, even if he wouldn’t tell the whole truth. I selected the ones that sang “good lungs,” “void channel,” and “quick dodge.” As I was judging where to keep these, the thought to keep them on my leather strap sat itself down in the front of my mind. I set one of them up against the strap trying to eyeball where to ask Piero to make a hole. The bone charm vibrated for a second and then two black tendrils wrapped themselves around the leather. I jumped back and dropped the other two charms.

 _Shit._ Bending down to pick them up, my thoughts raced. _Can these things get offended?_ Any other day I would beat myself for being so silly. This was not just any day though. The other two bone charms attached themselves to me and I pulled on some pants. Then I headed outside to train with my weapons.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I say "I" way too much. I need to stop. I'm still doing it.  
> Damnit I suck at this.  
> I refuse to believe that Corvo suddenly knew how the world worked and how his power worked with so little training and how bone charms and runes worked. Actually I still don't know how I'm going to make runes work. But anyway. The Outsider is sorta ooc so I can just say he was the one that gave Amber all those things that show up in his room. I also wanted them to appear while she was away instead of when she woke up.  
> Alright I'm shutting up now.


	15. Re-trained

Maybe fighting a pole with a knife after being in prison without any real practice for six months was not my best idea. Thankfully, I stopped early when I thought about what it could be doing to the edge of the blade. Instead, I found a small metal pole outside the workshop and used that in its stead. It was thin and long, so it wasn’t much heavier than the sword. _Swings the same, at least._ My main problem while training myself was that I was flinching from my own blade. Every memory I had of a knife in the last several months was of the point coming for me, or more specifically, my arms and legs. More than once tonight I had dropped the pipe while thinking about such things. _Can’t freak out._

I knew I waited too long to start practicing again. This was now a dangerous thing. _I blame you, Outsider._ What makes a demigod knock out a woman for two days before they have to go on missions to rescue an empress? Or while I’m on this rant, why am I being picked on by a demigod in the first place?

 _Cause I’m interesting apparently._ That still didn’t answer my first question, but most like the answer is simply _because he’s the Outsider._

I feigned dodging and reached out to kick the wooden post. My body was still sore and I knew I wouldn’t last in a real fight. This was more practicing my defeat than an actual fight. I would need to… to do whatever it is they have planned for me without being seen. If I’m seen, there's no way in the Void I could survive that encounter.

A good time passed when Samuel surprised me. “I see you’ve started your training alright.” I paused my movements and turned to look at him. I took off my mask and relaxed my face so I didn’t quite look so angry. “Started worrying about you. In all my time at sea, only seen two other people sleep for that long, and they all died from hypothermia after falling overboard.” He kept his distance from me, but leaned against a wall. He was being cautious. It was understandable. He had seen me freeze up when I heard Piero’s electric machine. Now that I had a weapon, I was a hazard. He probably thought I could faze out and accidentally kill someone.

 _I probably_ can _accidentally kill someone._ I was panting again. _Yes, this is dangerous._ It was hot under this coat. The heat had nowhere to go. It was such a long coat that it covered most of my legs down past my knees. I couldn’t tell what it was actually made out of, but it was relatively stiff.

I wondered if I would have another day to attempt training. Then I wondered if the Outsider would bring me into the Void if I had another day. _Probably not. Shit_.

“I wondered if you would wake in time for Havelock’s ‘master plans.’”

I smiled at him but I was still panting. _“You doubt him?”_

He sighed and looked up to the sky. “Believe he has a plan. Part of this all just… hm. I guess being a part of this is just frightening.” He rubbed his face with one hand. “This is treason, what we’re doing. But I think it’s the right thing. We gotta find that little girl and make her empress.”

I had to stop thinking this was personal for everyone. To them, Emily is just kid. But she’s more than that. She’s family. The last of mine.

I think I must have had on a dark look, because Samuel just nodded at me and left. No polite goodbye, as he usually gives. I looked at the sky. _I’ve wasted so much time._ The sun was behind buildings, so I couldn’t tell how close to sunset it was, but the sky was orange already. _Great. Time in the Void soon._

My mind told me it would be best not to doddle on my way there. I returned to the pub and washed myself. Last time I had to scrub that hard to get off dirt, it was my first time off the streets into a real bed belonging to the Grand Guard. Even the hosts of the Blade Verbena hadn’t offered me shelter because of my filth. _The joys of being a street rat._

Rats. Rats everywhere in this city brought the plague down on people. Six months ago, no one else had heard of the plague. _Wonder if that’s still the case._ I’ve had no contact with anyone beyond the city since Coldridge. I never really had friends to begin with, but certain contacts still kept in touch to get me information.

I towelled myself off and sat on my bed in temporary defeat. I had only two sets of clothes. My escape costume disappeared while I was away training, and only a thin set of shorts and a short shirt remained. These were obviously sleeping clothes, but what was I to wear while my clothes were still wet with sweat and I needed to eat?

I turned my head to look next to me on the bed. _I guess you_ can _be useful._ My dear knight in black mist delivered to me a new set of clothes. Close black fitting pants that came halfway down my calves, a dark grey camisole, and two new sets of undergarments were splayed before me. I smiled in response. Then frowned.

_Always watching, huh?_

I supposed it was nothing worse than what the men in prison saw during my time among them. I still grew red at the thought of _him_ seeing me for some reason. I changed quickly. Better to get it over with than to pout. My clothes on, I turned and left out the door to go eat.

It was whale meat again, and they tried to serve me water in a glass. I laughed to myself. That was not going to happen. I stood and grabbed a closed bottle of weak alcohol from the bar and returned to my seat.

After an uninteresting dinner, I closed off myself in my room and took a moment to breathe. I hadn’t even tried to use the… abilities outside of the Void. _Maybe it’s time._ I stood with in the doorless doorway. My hand was pointed to the far end of the room near the other doorway. I took a breath.

And blinked.

 _Son of a-_ I over shot it and knocked myself into the wall. My head hit hard and I fell back onto the floor. I heard a male laugh. _Bastard._ Rolling onto my stomach, I pushed myself up and decided I should practice more in the Void and hope it carried over. If I hurt myself again, it would put all Havelock’s plans in jeopardy. So instead of trying to blink again, I walked to my bed, lying flat on my back and closing my eyes.

The Outsider must have finally had some mercy on me, because I wasn’t awake for long after lying down. My eyes opened to the glow of the void, and I found myself in a familiar place.

Time was frozen, and the people were nowhere to be seen, but surrounding me were the streets of my home. I walked to the wall nearest me. “Local Grapes On Sale” was splayed in yellow across the brick wall. My neck was nearly crushed against this wall. Perhaps the Outsider had no heart after all.

My throat was tight, but after a few minutes of looking around with no sight of the sick bastard, I decided it was time for me to get started. Time may be meaningless here, but I bet I still only had so much energy in the void. I looked over my gear. All of it was here on me. _Good._ I tried simple blinking at first. For some reason, I kept over shooting it.

It took three times running into walls before the Outsider finally made an appearance. “Remember the bone charms I gave you?”

I thought about which ones I had picked. Void channel had been one of them. I almost smacked my own forehead. I felt for the charm. It vibrated when my finger brushed over it. This time, I listened to the bone charm as I looked on the ground at where I wanted to be. When my eyes opened again, I was there. I succeeded. I tried a few more times to blink across flat ground, each time with no trouble. After I decided I was proficient at that basic skill, I tried to blink up buildings. I had done this before on my first night in the Void. Maybe now that I had learned to listen to the bone charms when I use my abilities.

I walked through the buildings looking for a low set roof. If I remembered correctly… _Around this corner._ My memory held. There was a large open square once used for entertainment during festivals. On the far side, the land lowered about one storey, and the buildings were low so that people in the square had a good view of the sea. I could use these buildings no problem.

My body told me hours must have passed. I was in pain from my consistent failures, and I really hoped they wouldn’t carry over to when I woke up. I had only seen the Outsider twice throughout my time here. Once when he told me about the bone charms, and once I noticed him watching me from atop a distant building. I looked around now. He was sitting this time on a fountain in another square. He wasn’t even watching anything, just looking up.

 _Listening_.

I was tired. Not mentally so much as physically. I felt sore. My knees were scaped and my hands were slightly bloody. It was enough. Walking towards the Outsider, I felt scared. _Nervous?_ He seemed so relaxed. It was strange.

“Have you finished for the night?” His voice was lined with the familiarity of disappointment. When I didn’t answer, he asked “Do you feel prepared?”

“No, but do I really have a choice when I go back?”

“You always have a choice, even if the only other option is sitting back and watching the world fall apart.”

I sighed and sat next to him. “Are those my two options?” I felt I knew the answer, but it would be good to hear it. _Maybe._

He was silent for a moment. “Yes.” He leaned forward and looked down my left hand, seemingly studying his work. “The men that set up this plan, the ones that killed your empress, do you really think they will stop at the empire? Either they fall, or they create pure chaos. That is up to you.” I jumped when he put his hand over mine. The mark was warm, and his hand was oddly comforting. I closed my eyes. “For your sake,” he whispered, “I hope you’re ready.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well it's been quite a while. This chapter wasn't as dark as I was expecting it to be. I'll fix in a couple chapters.


	16. Prepared

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Been a while again.

The first day of my revenge, it rained. It had always rained in Dunwall since Jessamine died, but today was especially dismal. I felt the Outsider’s eyes on my from the moment I woke up. He watched me as I dressed, as I blinked down the stairs, and as I paused before walking into the bar area.

I purposefully avoided Havelock when I ventured downstairs, scared of what was to come. Instead, my aim was Piero. Anything he came up with at the last minute for me was sure to help. Just inside the garage, there was an audiograph player. My curiosity got the better of me and I pushed the sound button. “Does part of the soul live in the heart?” _Pound_. “If the heart keeps beating,” _pound_ , “does that mean the spirit is never released from oblivion?”

 _Nope. Not happening_. I stopped the player and rushed away. It was as though the heart knew I was thinking about it when I heard the words and beat twice as hard. When I found Piero, he stood upstairs looking out the window. There was a swirl on the wall at the top of the stairs, but I didn’t let my curiosity win this time. I simply continued to him.

Before I had reached him, he turned to me. “Havelock stopped in earlier, but I forgot what he wanted.” He turned back around and hunched over a book on the table. “He’s waiting to see you I believe.” I sighed and backtracked down the stairs towards the pub. _No avoiding him I suppose_. Lydia smiled at me as she walked around in front of the pub.

Inside, it was quiet. Havelock stood at the first table to the left. He was drinking, of course, and studying a book that looked at least several years old. I stepped loud when I neared him, and he wasted no time. “Well, let’s get down to it.”

With each word, I felt a tug at my left hand. I wasn’t ready. The Outsider knew it. I knew it.

Havelock raised his glass to me as he spoke. “First off, I know that assassination is dark business. But sometimes, good men have to do bad things to make the world right.”

 _Only bad men think that aloud_.

“Our purpose is clear. We want to restore her majesty’s line by finding and putting Emily Kaldwin on the throne. To those ends, we’ll hide, act in shadow. Take them apart, piece by piece.” He took a large gulp of his whiskey. “Tonight, High Overseer Campbell dies by your hand. It won’t be easy. He’s protected by his overseers, an army of religious zealots. But if anyone can do it, you can. Your exploits are legendary. Campbell carries a private journal. Once you’ve eliminated him, get the journal, because we think it contains Emily’s location.”

I tensed. _We can know where she is as soon as tonight_.

“Recovering her is obviously critical.” He sounded as though he was reminding himself rather than stating a fact. “Assuming she’s alive.” I frowned and my brow twitched. It was obvious in the way his breath hitched that he noticed my concern in those words. He paused before continuing. “That’s the gist of it. Remember our cause, and strike true. We’re counting on you.” He turned around, but continued speaking. “Another thing. Campbell is holding a former overseer by the name of Martin. He’s one of us, and if you manage to find him, give him whatever help you can.”

 _An overseer being held in the Abbey. How easy_. I nodded in response. Barely avoiding a collision with Cecilia, I walked outside yet again. Though it was raining lightly, it was bright.

A voice shook me. “Oh Amber? If you’ve a moment?” I looked to Callista sitting on a chest near the steps to the dock. Her back was straight, and when she stood, she was tall, taller than me. She looked off to the side as though she were nervous. “I’m sorry to intrude on your business but this is important. I suspect you’re going to kill the High Overseer.” I nodded. “That wretched man. There’s really no reason for you to listen to me, but my uncle Geoff Curnow, still serves as a captain in the City Watch.”

I raised my brows in surprise. I had no idea he still served. He seemed loyal to Jessamine, so it’s odd he’d serve Burrows just the same. _I suppose a crown is a crown to some people_.

“He’s a good man, and my only family.” She had a sad expression, but it quickly turned serious. “The chatter in the servant circle is that Campbell just took delivery of an exotic poison, and I think I know why. My uncle’s not corruptible like the rest of them. Campbell is going to poison my uncle.” I furrowed my brow. She paused. “Do you think that you could protect him? You used to do that, right? Before you had your… current profession.” When I looked at her confused, she added quickly, “Before you became an assassin.”

I raised my head slowly, and just lowered it to the side. I hadn’t touched anyone yet, and I was already labelled an assassin.

Callista walked away without another word. She most likely saw that she had offended me and took leave.

With not much else to do, I returned to Piero. This time when I walked up to him, I felt the heart in its pack beat. I looked around Piero to the table. Next to his book sat a rune.

“What can I do for you?”

I jumped at his voice and noticed him looking back at me. I pointed to the rune.

“Ah. This piece was quite expensive. It cost me 500 gold.”

I blinked. _Really expensive._ Then I nodded. 500 it was. I slipped it into a pocket and slipped away, back down the stairs.

When I reached the boat on the dock, Samuel looked up at me. His face was mostly expressionless, but there was anxiety woven into his posture. “Are you ready to go?” I pulled the mask to my face and adjusted until it fit snug. Then I slipped into the boat.

_This is it._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So not that it has any consequence, but I changed Amber's last name to Attano to match the game better.  
> If you're keeping count, this is the fourth time I've changed her name.


	17. Piqued

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well this shit took forever

“It’ll be a rough trip.” Samuel looked back at me from his perch on the boat. He was more on edge now that we were nearing the distillery district. “Used to be you go straight up Clavering Boulevard, but now it’s not so easy.” He shook his head. “Half the city’s dead of the plague, the other half’s fightin over what’s left.” He looked forward again to watch as he steered the boat to a piece of land near the boulevard. He was careful to lower the engine to be quieter, and tried his best to stay out of sight from some nearby guards. “City watch still holds the bigger streets, and they’ve set up those wall of light checkpoints. A man walks through one of those and he ends up burnt to a crisp.” He spoke lower now. “Everything not controlled by the city watch is gang territory.”

I looked up to see a large pipe overhead that was draining sewage water out to the sea. _The hagfish must love that._ I didn’t want to look down. Outsider knows how many bodies I could see in just the ten feet around the boat.

“There are the real odd birds livin on the fringes. Like that Granny Rags. They say she’s nuts.”

I’d heard stories about Granny Rags from around the city. They say she worships the Outsider. I closed my eyes as the boat hit land. _Is that what I do now?_ I opened them and leaned forward. _No. I don’t worship the bastard. He toys with me._

“Dunno which is worse. Just… Take your pick.” Samuel stood before the boat even stopped rocking and stepped out, taking a seat by a small fire.

I waited a few more moments, shook my head, and then proceeded. I walked around him and followed the path to the right. The rain came much harder now, so stepping over the metal pipe laid in the ground was harder than it should have been. When I got to the other side of it, I peered ahead. _Two watchmen on the bridge in front of me, one below._ The lower one was my first target, of course. I crouched down to stay out of sight, and crept forward towards a set of stairs in front of me towards the left. My steps slowed as I got nearer.

“Let’s go. It’s nearly midnight.” The man’s voice was deeper than it should have been for someone as skinny as he was. “But easy damnit! Keep em in the boat. Canal’s got enough shit in it as it is.”

_Very true._ A body fell from the bridge. They were just tossing them over the side like luggage. I sighed quietly in the mask. _Disgusting._ The guard in front of me began to stride forward. With my sword drawn just in case, I followed slowly.

“Hey!”

_Shit._ I froze. Had they seen me? My body was pressed behind a large crate. If they’d seen me already, I was seriously in trouble.

“What is it?”

“I think that last one was moving.”

I leaned against the crate and sighed. _It wasn’t me._ My heart needed a moment to slow down as the men spoke more words to each other. Poking my head around the crate, I looked for the guard I had my sights on earlier. He was kicking at the ground trying to kill a rat. Then he kept walking. My sword was put back in it sheath. I saw my chance, but I needed to be careful. He was completely under the bridge now, completely cut off from the others. If he were to lose consciousness…

I stayed low behind the crate. Slowly, I reached out my left hand. Focusing on the ground to a point just behind the man, I took in a breath and blinked.

He was in front of me with his back towards me. _I made it._ Before I could celebrate the minor victory, I acted, snaking my arm around the man’s neck. He grunted and fought before falling slack. His body went to fall, but I pulled it up and dragged it to the stone to my left, setting him up. Then I continued forward. There was a longer set of stairs in front of me, and at the top, a woman was wandering around. I paid her no attention. The ground was dirt beneath me, and each step was louder than intended. She startled when she looked at me, but then turned away to the water and kept mumbling to herself about having to keep some shitty job. Times were tough. So were perverted noble bosses. In front of me were two tins of food and a spiral of copper wire.

_Piero can use this._ I stuffed it away in a small bag. Up yet another set of stairs to my left, there was a man walking around. He gasped at the sight of the mask and pulled back.

Then came the yelling.

I flinched at the sound. The guards would surely hear him. Anyone with ears could probably hear him. It had to stop. I reached out and grabbed his upper arm, blinking us both down the street away from the bridge. Then I did the same as with the first guard, letting him slowly fall to the ground once unconscious. My ears thanked me. I jumped at a sound off to my left. When I looked, there was another man. He didn’t flinch, and didn’t yell. Instead he just put up one hand at me. It was a half assed surrender, but he nodded and looked away without caring. The half-alley he was hidden away in held more rats than corpses, and judging by the littered cobblestone street around me, that was rare.

There was a loud horn sound. “This is the Lord Regent speaking. It is with regret-“

_Horseshit!_

“-that I announce that my term as Lord Regent has been extended through the Month of Harvest, and potentially-“

_Crash_! I looked further down the street to where the shattering came from. A woman as old as dirt stood on a second floor balcony. From there she was throwing pots down, shouting “Garbage garbage garbage.”

_“There are the real odd birds livin on the fringes.”_

_Granny Rags._

If she could get me past the walls of light, I needed to speak to her. I glanced once more at the conscious man before continuing down the road. Rats scurried past me, but seemed to… almost congregate outside her door. Her locked door. I stepped back and looked up to where she stood before. Emptiness. But the door upstairs was wide open. _My way in._ I backed up a few more steps and concentrated on her balcony. In a blink I was there, facing the inside. It’s hard to imagine a witch living in a house so dirty. Weren’t they supposed to draw men of faith in and command them like slaves? _Do I even believe in witches?_ I’d have to ponder that while I explored the house. Her voice still pierced the air, “You never listen!” She was still inside, but where? In front of me there was an upturned boat, and around the room there were candles set up. Under the boat there was a pile of complete trash and rubble. I walked past all that to a door on the other side of the room.

“I think the little birdies are sad today.”

_Down._

It was a stairwell. The upstairs was blocked by beds and chairs. I drew my crossbow and crept down the stairs towards the voice. _This lady is already freaking me the fuck out and I haven’t even seen her face._

But she didn’t seem so scary when I was right in front of her. In fact, she seemed only frail.

“Is that you my dear husband?”

_Oh shit._


	18. Introduced

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> edited some tense changes and such.

_“Be Careful.”_

It was barely a whisper, but I knew that voice. I turned my head towards the noise, but saw nothing. There weren’t even shadows.

“Have you seen my little birdies?”

I turned back to the ancient woman in front of me. _What the-_

“The dear things must be starving without their granny. Here Birdies!” _Click click click._

_Birds? In Dunwall?_ The only birds here were crows picking at the dead.

_Thump thump thump!_ I jumped at the first knock and had my blade out before I could stop myself.

“Oh, my my my. I think I have gentlemen callers again, but not the way I used to, not the nice ones.” _Thump thump!_ “I hear them, and their not very polite ones either.” She raised her voice a note or two and mocked the men. “’Granny rags, Granny rags, let us in!’”

I looked towards the direction of the men outside. _How many are there?_

“Aw well.” _Excuse me?_ “They’ll go away again if they know what’s good for them.” She had to be crazy. “But what a bother!” There were obviously angry men outside her door and she was barely phased. She calmly reached behind her back, and instinctively my hand tightened on my sword. But all she did was pull out a key. “Here’s the key to the front door, love. You’ll see to those ruffians, won’t you?”

_Am I to kill them?_ I followed the sound down a short hall and found the front door. Dust flew up as they pounded away. I knelt down at the door, peaking through the keyhole. _Three._ _I can do this._ I sighed and back up. If I didn’t take care of them, they’d bother her forever. She’s insane, but did she deserve this? My knife was traded for the crossbow and I lowered myself. With one arm extended fully, I unlocked the door and turned the knob, letting it fall open on its own. Then I backed into a room right next to the front door.

“Huh?” The first man trickled in the door and began to look around cautiously. With a bolt through the head, he was ended.

“Oh shi-!” The next man ran through the door and hovered over the body of his friend. “Where are you?”

I quickly and quietly reloaded. He was only a few steps in front of me. But he was no harder to kill. I only had one problem now. _Where is the third man?_ I waited seventeen breaths before I pivoted forward. He wasn’t making a sound. _Is he even still out there? Did the bastard run?_ I stood, moved forward, and rounded the corner to face outside-

-and I was greeted with a Molotov cocktail. I reacted too quickly, slicing upwards with my blade and shattering the glass. Burning liquid splashed around the foyer and on to my coat. The tiny flames on me quickly extinguished themselves. _Thank you, Piero._ I rolled forward towards the door, and when my feet touched ground, my crossbow was in front of me ready to fire. _Dead._

Before I could turn to examine the fire, wind rushed past me and the smell of smoke instantly dissipated. I had a moment of panic when my hair flew up and was _fucking white,_ but I calmed again as I turned.

At the far end of the hall stood Granny Rags herself with her hands clasped at her chest, smiling ever so slightly. “Oh, my dear, I knew you’d help me with those ill-mannered boys. My brave man.” She closed her eyes, cocked her head to the side, and her smile widened sickeningly. “Listen. Granny has a birthday present for you.” Pause. “I got it from the Outsider-“

_Shit fuck no fuck fuck fuck_

“-and now I’m giving it to you.” She motioned to the steps as she walked back to the corner I found her in. “Go on. It’s upstairs. On the vanity. I think you’ll cut a nice figure with it.” She closed her eyes and put her hands to her heart. “Remember how we used to dance?” I backed up a step. “Our parties were even grander than those at the Boyle manor. Everyone wanted to come.” With that she turned to the sink and stopped talking to me.

I backed up and decided it was best to take whatever gift she had for me. At the very top of the steps, I felt a soft _thud_ from one of the pouches I had strapped to my belt. _The heart?_ I mouthed out.

_“I can feel a great age ending.”_

_Oh not this shit again._ Rather than antagonize the human organ, I ignored the ever ominous words and stepped back into the room I entered the house in. With each movement the heart pounded again, and each time it was harder. There was a string tied to the tip of the overturned boat, and at the end was tied a rune. I brushed my fingertips over mark on the front. _Mine now I guess._ With that I pocketed the rune and placed it with the others. _That’s three._ _How do I even cash these in?_

“I hope you like the little gift I got for you.” My grip tightened on my sword yet again as I jump at the sound of Granny Rag’s voice. “It’s the least I could do for turning those louts away.” She let out a sigh and looked away out the balcony door. “I can’t bear these Bottle Street children.”

_I guess everyone is a child compared to you._

“Ruffians, every last one of them. Rotten apples! And that Slackjaw is the worst of the lot.”

_What in the Void kind of name is Slackjaw?_

“You know what I just thought of? You could do something else for me, another little favor. And I’d give you another present.”

_Another rune?_ I put my hand over the pouch in which I carried my runes. _These are immensely powerful. I need more._ I pressed my eyes closed. Was that my thought, or his? But as she explained her plan to poison the Bottle Street Gang, I knew I had no choice in the matter. These were bad people, and this would be a way to put them down a notch. _Get to Doctor Galvani’s lab, get the rat guts, poison the distillery._

“Now run off. My baby birdies are hungry. So precious.” _Click click click._

Off to Clavering it was then. I turned away from the old lady and stepped towards the balcony door. Before I stepped out, my pocket _thudded._ I let out a huff of a laugh. I was fairly certain there was no other rune or bonecharm here. What else could that thing have been trying to warn me about. As I walked out the door, I heard it.

_“Be careful.”_


	19. Drafted

Running along the rooftops was easier than trying to weave through the streets. When I arrived at the Doctor’s flat, I did so on the second floor balcony, silently. And for some stupid reason, the door was unlocked. _Do these people not fear men like me?_ I peeked through the cracked door, seeing no one. With that I stepped inside and knelt down. Moving low through here was probably my best bet. I heard voices, but I kept moving forward. _No point sitting still waiting for them to come to me._ At the far end of the room was a set of double glass doors, and through them, there was a couple standing. They talked quickly and quietly, but I kept my body close to the wall to listen.

“Wait, did you touch the door handle to Doctor Galvani’s lab?” The woman was near a panic.

“Yeah, I think so.” He, meanwhile, was not.

“Then you have to scrub!”

I backed up and looked for a way around them. _Don’t touch anything in the lab, don’t breathe in anything in the lab._ I laughed at myself. _Don’t be in the lab would the best course of action._ On my way back to the other end of the room I noticed a safe. Next to the safe was a door. _Without the combination, you’re useless to me._ Lucky for me, the door led to a hall that led far down to my left, right where I needed to go. A few rats scurried along the floor, but they avoided me. To the left in front of me, there was a door. _And on the other side of that door there were people to deal with._ I peeked through the keyhole.

_No one._

_Shit._

My first goal. Find the two people who could ruin a simple task of retrieval. I slowly opened the door and leaned out enough to see. I barely saw the heels of a woman going into a room on the other side of the near-spiral stairwell. _She’s first._ The man was nowhere in sight still, but I took my chance to swiftly cross the open area. When I made it to the door without incident, I opened it quick and stepped forward.

She turned around at the same moment and gasped. It was obvious the first thing she saw was my mask. Even I’d flinch at the sight of it. I had my blade in front of me and I pointed it at her, putting a finger up to the mouth of the mask. _Sshh._ She put a hand over her own mouth and slowly backed away from me. I lightly kicked the door closed behind me. When she tripped backwards over her own feet, I flipped the blade in my hand to point it away from her. In a pocket to my left sat some sleep darts. _She doesn’t need to get hurt._ The needle pierced her neck and she was down in a matter of moments.

I pulled her onto my shoulders and delivered her to the bed inside the room. _Am I a hypocrite?_ A key jingled against its ring as she fell and I slipped it off the ring. _As a maid, she would need access to every room._ This must be a master key. I looked around the room. The bookshelf to my right was uninteresting, so I walked to the end of the bed and searched the table there. A diary sat open.

 

**_I’ve been invited to a soiree at the Boyle Estate. Of course, I won’t attend. The 28th day of the 7th month, the Month of High Cold, is the day I met Anton Sokolov at the Academy. Why would I tarnish the anniversary of the most important day of my life by licking aristocratic boots? I have no time for fools. I will be solving the riddle of this plague._ **

**_Perhaps I’ll raise a cup of Tyvian red._ **

 

Interesting enough. I glanced off to my left. There was a room divider set up, and behind it on a table were sleep darts. I picked them up and studied them quickly. _Why does every one of these I find fit my crossbow properly?_ A question I may ask Piero later. For now, I need to find a way to get this plague to the distillery. I turned and left the room, keeping an eye out for the man I heard earlier. His humming was loud enough. I looked up towards the sound. _Another floor up._ He sang some word and hummed the rest, moving to and from the stairwell. I needed this timed right. If I ran up the stairs when he was watching, he’d have plenty of time to shoot me. So I waited and counted. _Twelve steps to the stairs, twelve steps from._ On the first step away from the stairs, I blinked most of the way up. Then I aimed my crossbow and fired at him. He fell with a thud and mumbled in his sleep.

I smiled. _I can do this._ I moved forward and looked around, even inside what looked like the lab. _No one._ He could stay there, then. He looked like he just fell over drunk. Which, as a watch officer, wouldn’t be surprising. I took to this to my advantage and too the bolt out of his side. _No one the wiser._ Except maybe his fiancée who I just knocked out in the bedroom, but hey. I looked back to the lab entrance and reached for the door. “ _Don’t touch.”_

I paused. That wasn’t my thought. I looked around for another person but just saw a light mist. _The Outsider?_ I turned again. _That’s right. Everything is contaminated._ Even through gloves it was too dangerous to try. And I wasn’t about to test how much the Outsider held me in his favor. _Though obviously it was quite a bit._ I backed up and accidentally kicked the guard behind me. He had to have something to block me from touching the door handle. Or anything. A handkerchief or something would be enough. I tried not to turn him too much, and found what I was looking for in his front right pocket. I pulled out the rag and draped it over my hand, then turned my attention back to the door.

 _Locked._ Of course it was locked. _Great._ I backed up again, avoiding the guard this time. He still grumbled in his sleep. I looked around for another way into the lab. To my left there was another door similar to the one I came out of downstairs. _Please be unlocked._ Luck, or The Outsider, was with me. It swung open with a loud _creak_ and I went through blade first. It was another hall that led off to the right. Rats scurried around my feet, but overall ignored me. They just picked up bits off food and ran off into the grates. I thought for a moment, then knocked a bottle off the table to my right with my sword.

Nothing.

I relaxed a bit, putting away my blade and focusing more on not touching anything. I hoped my mask kept anything in the air from reaching me. Toward the end of the hall on the right was another door that led into the lab area. There was a long tablet set out in the main area of the room. Behind a wall was another more technical looking set up. Books were scattered and there was a sonograph on the desk in the corner. I didn’t dare touch it. Even if it held something important, I didn’t want to risk contamination any more than necessary. I looked around for any essence of the plague, but couldn’t see anything. Except the floor… To the left of the balcony door against the wall was a large bookshelf. The floor looked as though it had been scraped with something heavy. _Or repeatedly_. I studied the shelf itself, hoping something stood out. On the second shelf towards the left, there was a book that just didn’t quite fit. All the other books were in good condition, but this one looked worn and the title –  Tales from the Outside Looking in – just didn’t make sense. I reached for it, almost with the wrong hand, and pulled it out. But it caught. The was a loud _click_ and the whole shelf shook. Then it bounced away from the wall and started swivelling to the adjacent wall. I peeked behind it. There was a whole other room, and right in front of me, a plague rat, ripped open and pinned down in dissection form.

I cringed. This was new. I needed something to hold the rat in while I took it to the distillery. Looking around, nothing immediately jumped out at me. I sighed. _Got to sacrifice a bag._ There were several hooked to my belt, but they each served a purpose. Pursing my lips, I combined the pouch holding my vials of elixir, leaving one free to carry… this. I looked to the rat and nearly gagged. _I only need the viscera._ The rag draped over the rat and I squeezed the insides, pulling away and feeling them snap off the rat. I did gag. The rag and viscera went into the bag, and I made sure to keep it away from everything else I was carrying. Now to leave. I turned back around and headed for the door. _Damnit._ My only rag was covered in rat guts. I closed my eyes. _I have to go back down._ I sighed and retraced my footsteps towards the door, then paused.

 _The safe._ I turned back around, careful not to get too close to anything, but looking around the room for something that could hint at what the safe code was. _A birthday? Anniversary?_ It had to have been a special time he wouldn’t forget. _When did he say he meeting with Sokolov was? 28 th day of the 7th month? _I nodded to myself, not really paying attention, and followed my steps downstairs to the safe, picking up anything of value I saw along the way. My ear stayed sharp for any noise signalling someone was coming. _Like one of the guards humming downstairs._

_2-8-7_

With a click, the safe unlocked and opened. Inside were two gold ingots. I raised a brow. _Nice._ Now it was time to leave. For sure. I left through the door I came in and breathed deep when I stepped outside. _Bad idea._ The smells of dead bodies still came through the mask. I hopped up on then vent that followed the building towards the river and made my way to the rooftops again. Instead of going down the main street, I moved towards the back alley, towards the distillery.

“Let me out. I’m fine!”

“That’s not what we heard.”

I felt my lip twitch. What were they doing to that man?

“It was just a cold.”

“Are you sure? Cause you know we have to check you over. And there’s an inspection fee.”

I followed the sound to the alley and looked down, around one of the large pipes. Two thugs dressed similarly to the ones from earlier stood outside a doorway. I couldn’t see the door itself, but I guessed they had locked him in there. I sighed. This couldn’t go on. I see now why these men needed to be dealt with. This is the second time today I’ve seen them harassing someone for what seems like no reason. I pulled out my crossbow and dropped down to the pipe, hoping it would hold my weight. There was only a light _thump_ as I landed and it didn’t seem as though the two men below me noticed. They needed to focus on him for just another moment. My crossbow was loaded with a sleep dart, and my hand was aimed to the ground behind one of them men. In under a second, I had shot one of them with the dart and blinked behind the other. I held him close by the neck until he finally stopped kicking, then dropped him.

“Hey!” I turned to the door. No, not a door. A barricaded doorway. “Let me out!” He eyed me through the cracks. Then he backed away from the barricade. I nodded, bracing myself. Kicking forward, I broke away the lower boards. When there was a gap large enough to fit him through, I pushed a couple of the higher boards with my shoulder, letting them fall away. I ducked under them and stood on the other side, facing the old man. “I owe you, brother. I won’t ask about the mask,” he paused, “or the hair. I wouldn’t want my face seen either, pullin’ a stunt like that.” He smiled and nodded once. “I’ll tell you what. I’ll return the favor. Come by Griff’s shop, that’s my business.” He rubbed his face and looked off to the side. “Well it was, at one time, but now I’m reduced to scavenging things from here and there as the city dies.” I looked down. He noticed, pausing his words, then clearing his throat. “If you need anything, I wouldn’t mind trading for a little money.” I nodded and moved to the side so he could leave his temporary prison. He moved slowly, looking nowhere in particular as he walked. “Maybe someday the plague will blow over and everything will go back to normal.” He sighed. “But until then it’s scavenging for me.”

I turned away and looked around the room. Nothing really of interest, minus a few coins and some food. But something was… singing. I closed my eyes. It was a bone charm. _Up._ I moved towards another doorway and followed it through. _Dead end._ Or not. I looked up and saw a gap in the wall to the left. There was a desk and debris that looked stable enough to hold my weight. I set a foot up and pushed my body up enough grab onto the ledge of the next floor, then pulled myself up. There was a candelabra lit on a table, and next to that, the bone charm. It whispered to me as I held it. _Strong arms._

I let it string itself to my chest in place of _Good Lungs,_ that one moving to one of the pouches on my belt. The rooms held little else of interest, so I moved outside to find Griff. _Wonder what he’s got for sale._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (9/8/16) So fun news. I had gotten up to the point where she gets to the high overseer when my internet cut out, my computer got stuck in an endless loop of automatic repairs, and my file completely deleted itself back to before she even gets to the distillery. So I'm gonna be delayed and slightly angry. So the chapter numbers will change as well as the tone of the next chapter. Being my emotional and slightly sadistic self, I have to take out my anger somehow, it will be on Amber.
> 
> (10/15/16) It's getting to the point that my internet is so bad I can't watch walkthroughs to get the dialogue I need. I may end up having to wait until Dishonored 2 comes out (!) to get the original game on download so I can get another damn chapter up. I'll still try to get it all together, but I wouldn't expect anything until ~mid November. Really sorry guys.
> 
> (2/25/17) I'm homeless and jobless, but I've still got my laptop. I haven't given up on this fic, I swear.
> 
> (2/26/17) Guess who doesn't have a laptop now.
> 
> (3/24/17) my laptop is being held by ups and they won't deliver it. I'm so close to being able to write again.


End file.
